Making a List, Checking it Twice...

I love the holidays and look forward every year to celebrating with family and friends.  The mood lightens, the holiday cheer is in the air (and for some people in their cups), the traditions surface, and there is more positive energy in the work place.  We all would like to bottle up that “niceness” for the entire year.  My blog this week is about being better as a team (and also Star Wars – go see Star Wars).

My top ten list of things to do with your family (work or personal family) this time of year:

10 - Make a thank you video and send it to those who do not expect it (check – made “thank you” video for our nation-wide team not located in Virginia)
9 - Have a potluck themed food event (check – potluck Thanksgiving with waaaay too much food and a cookie exchange coming this Wednesday)
8 - Support a charity (check – coat collection with our team)
7 - Have a hot cocoa bar (check – although team did it without me when I was in NYC ...maybe they were sending me a message??)
6 - Collect toys for kids (check – we did a wonderful giving tree for kids in need)
5 - Decorate (check – wonderful work snow village and signs denoting all the holidays this season, including Festivus!)
4 - Break bread together – nothing helps build relationships like food and good discussion (check – lunch with my staff a few days every week)
3 - Laugh more (check – but never enough laughter)
2 - Give thanks and recognition and a handshake and a smile and a…. (you get the idea)
1 - Write a letter to “Santa” noting all the people and things you are thankful for, all the blessings you have and what you want to achieve in 2018.  Tuck it away in a drawer and pull it out on those tough winter days in February, those long nights in June and those weekends in October when work, stress and life have consumed you.

… and wishing everyone a “Happy Holidays” to all who celebrate. People celebrate a variety of holidays during this time of year with a variety of traditions (just a few examples include wishing you a: Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Ramadan, and/or Happy Diwali) and some choose to celebrate none. Don't be afraid to ask people what holidays they celebrate and use the opportunity to learn about different cultures/religions and the traditions that accompany them. For whatever and whenever you celebrate – enjoy and please have a Happy New Year!

Finally, “Happy Festivus” (for those who are in on the joke).  The non-commercial holiday's celebration, as depicted on Seinfeld, occurs on December 23rd and includes a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminum Festivus pole, practices such as the "Airing of Grievances" and "Feats of Strength", and the labeling of easily explainable events as "Festivus miracles".  Jerry Seinfeld refers to it as "a Festivus for the rest of us", referencing its open-source nature and non-commercial character. It has been described both as a parody holiday festival and as a form of playful consumer resistance.

Together.  We.  Win.

Dave Harmon
People Division
“Kindness is Currency”
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/davidharmonhr

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