5 Creative Ideas For Throwing An Office Holiday Party People Will Love

Holiday office parties can be maligned and/or dreaded for a multitude of perfectly understandable reasons. Sometimes the camaraderie is forced and employees resent the "gift" of socializing with people they wouldn’t want to otherwise. Sometimes the party’s so cheap it makes people feel unappreciated (I remember one workplace where we were "rewarded" for our efforts with an employee potluck from 12:00-1:00 p.m. in the lunchroom). And sometimes the big blowout comes off as tacky or soulless, especially when it involves party goers who have a lot to say, a lot to drink, and not much to eat.

Not all office holiday parties, however, are recipes for social disaster; in fact, many workers have happy memories of holiday parties, and not just the ones with the biggest budget or the longest mashed potato bar. Here are some creative ideas to help your next office party sparkle—and create real holiday warm and fuzzies among your colleagues:

1. ACTUALLY GIVE BACK

The alumni relations department at the University of Chicago throws lavish annual Christmas bashes, but interactive content editor Joy Olivia Miller’s favorite party took place at a different sort of venue: Her team went to the Ronald McDonald house and cooked together. "We spent the afternoon chatting and laughing while we made a huge pot of gumbo and sugar cookies for the families staying there," Miller recalled. "We brought some drinks and holiday tunes and kept it casual."

To Miller, actually helping meant more than just paying lip service to charity by asking employees to toss an old winter coat into a bin on the way into an opulent fete. "I think that one remains so special because it wasn't a huge to-do at a noisy place: It felt more like giving back because we actually gave our time, too." 

2. GO FOR THE BIG TENT APPROACH

Emily Graslie, chief curiosity correspondent at Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History, is a fan of the way the museum's holiday parties involve everyone, from staff to interns to volunteers. Plus, she says, "parties with research and collections scientists are a blast because it's a jovial time to share stories of expeditions and discoveries. The amount of history and knowledge contained in a party like that is a great reminder for why we work here in the first place. While I love the science, it's really about my colleagues, those people who pursued obscure passions into novel careers."

Source: 5 Creative Ideas For Throwing An Office Holiday Party People Will Love

"You know what everyone really wants for a holiday party? A day off! Give me $20; I'll get my own dinner and go home and spend it with my family."

Your partner in health, 

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA

Certified Health Coach

Wellness Consultant

C2 Your Health LLC

WELCOA Faculty

Nominated Top 100 Health Promotion Professional  

Worksite Wellness - Stressed Out? 6 Tips To Reduce Work-Life Stress And Improve Your Health

Just turn on the news and you'll be hearing about the latest company down-sizing, right-sizing, slow down, re-organizing, down economy or as the financial advisers say - economic winter. What about you? All this bad news and at work you're burned out, exhausted mentally and physically. Have you asked yourself - "at what price?"

As your responsibilities grow, your shoulders become heavy with the burden of your life as it gets busier and more stressed day-by-day. With constant worry, increased responsibilities and more work - life becomes frantic. Our head becomes heavy with fatigue and dizziness; this is enough to not only make you feel tired but make you sick too. Really sick.

Stress can be different things to different people. For most of us stress is commonly caused by a feeling of too much work, too little time, financial loss, feeling out of control all of which contribute to thoughts which can make you feel depressed. Everyone suffers from stress at some point in his or her life, but the real challenge is to overpower and kill the stress developing inside you, and NOT to get killed by it.

Stress is connected to chronic ailments such as back pain, headaches and fatigue. Chronic diseases such as the flu, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer, Crohn's Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, GERD just to name a few are all impacted by long-term stress. The connection between your perception of stress and your body's ability to fight off disease is so strong some experts think stress can be "deadly". So you're right, your job is killing you and now we can prove it! Feel better?

Source: Worksite Wellness -Stressed Out? 6 Tips To Reduce Work-Life Stress And Improve Your Health

Your partner in health,

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA
Certified Health Coach
Wellness Consultant
WELCOA Faculty
C2 Your Health LLC  

What’s Your Personal Health Plan Look Like?

Whether you have 1 employee or 5000 people work where you work it seems many of us live minute by minute. You and the people you work with may be planning their week at work but not planning for their health and happiness. Their family life is in crisis mode moving from one crisis to the next moving to the next urgent problem to the next chaos in their life. You too as a manager or business owner maybe doing much the same thing. What gets left in the dust is your health, the health of your family and the people you work with. Why? Because many people just don’t have a plan.

You might want to stop for a second, take a breath then ask yourself “Is my health important to me and is it important enough to me to plan for?” I will never forget the day I was sitting across from a health coaching client when they said “No, my health is not a priority to me.” Really? You have got to be kidding! You plan for your health now or plan for your medical bills later. You either make your health a priority or your health will become a priority for you when you develop sickness that keeps you from enjoying your family, working on your job and takes your money. 

So what’s the plan? What are your health goals? Do you know? If you have not thought it over in a while now is a great time. The rules are the same when it comes to planning your vacation, your business and your health. The more time you spend planning the more fun and prosperity you’ll experience.  

Once you have a plan in place then to insure success you will need to keep track what’s important like your care GPS keeps you on track helping you reach your destination.

Most experts agree these are the top five most important influencers on your health and well-being:

1. The quality, quality and frequency of your food choices.

2. How much and what type of activity you experience.

3. Sleep quality and duration.

4. How you manage family, financial and job stress.

5. Water quality and frequency of consumption.

Food Influencers: Does how you feel influence your food choices? Food choices are made for many reasons besides hunger and these hide in your daily actions. Sometimes it’s convenience and availability. Are healthy foods convenient and available in your company break room? Are there healthy restaurants close by? Can you bring your lunch to work? 

Other times your food choices are determined by your level of frustration, time pressures and stress. When this happens you are more likely to make unhealthy food choices. Plan to keep healthy foods like fruits, vegetables and nuts nearby in your desk, purse or car to sooth your mood.

It’s important to bring eating into your awareness. Noticing patterns in foods choices and behaviors will help you make better decisions in the future.  Not sure what to eat? The USDA can help www.choosemyplate.gov.

Track your successes: Don’t limit yourself in how you measure success. The scale is only one way and maybe not the best because the weather and food additives will cause the scale to fluctuate. Monitor your clothing size, measure your waist, legs, and arms, and monitor how tight or loose your clothes feel.

Keep track of your food choices too. How may fruits, vegetables and whole grains are you eating? Not enough check this out www.YourJuicePlus.com. Most importantly monitor how you feel and how your body is working. With better food choices comes energy, better sleep, improved digestion, lower blood pressure, weight loss and many other health benefits.

Track your goals:  While your long-term goal may be to lose 10, 25, 50 or more pounds, you need small goals to keep your motivation up. Focus on improved healthy and vitality. Being skinny in your casket really isn’t what you are shooting for. You can’t control your weight but you can control your habits. Make goals you have control of such as eat 1 more fruit and veggie per day, exercise 30 minutes and go to bed early enough to get 8 hours of sleep.

So what’s your plan to get and stay healthy? What’s the plan to support your employees to make healthier choices at work? When you look down the road what do you see in your future and your company’s future? If It’s not health then you still have time it’s never too late to get started down the road to better health.  

Need some help? Then ask a wellness consultant, certified health coach or health professional find a program that’s right for you and those you work with.  

Your partner in health, 

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA

Certified Health Coach 

Wellness Consultant 

C2 Your Health LLC

LinkedIN 

What’s Your Health Plan Look Like?

Whether you have 1 employee or 5000 people work where you work it seems many of us live minute by minute. You and the people you work with may be planning their week at work but not planning for their health and happiness. Their family life is in crisis mode moving from one crisis to the next moving to the next urgent problem to the next chaos in their life. You too as a manager or business owner maybe doing much the same thing. What gets left in the dust is your health, the health of your family and the people you work with. Why? Because many people just don’t have a plan.

You might want to stop for a second, take a breath then ask yourself “Is my health important to me and is it important enough to me to plan for?” I will never forget the day I was sitting across from a health coaching client when they said “No, my health is not a priority to me.” Really? You have got to be kidding! You plan for your health now or plan for your medical bills later. You either make your health a priority or your health will become a priority for you when you develop sickness that keeps you from enjoying your family, working on your job and takes your money. 

So what’s the plan? What are your health goals? Do you know? If you have not thought it over in a while now is a great time. The rules are the same when it comes to planning your vacation, your business and your health. The more time you spend planning the more fun and prosperity you’ll experience.  

Once you have a plan in place then to insure success you will need to keep track what’s important like your care GPS keeps you on track helping you reach your destination.

Most experts agree these are the top five most important influencers on your health and well-being:

1. The quality, quality and frequency of your food choices.

2. How much and what type of activity you experience.

3. Sleep quality and duration.

4. How you manage family, financial and job stress.

5. Water quality and frequency of consumption.

Food Influencers: Does how you feel influence your food choices? Food choices are made for many reasons besides hunger and these hide in your daily actions. Sometimes it’s convenience and availability. Are healthy foods convenient and available in your company break room? Are there healthy restaurants close by? Can you bring your lunch to work? 

Other times your food choices are determined by your level of frustration, time pressures and stress. When this happens you are more likely to make unhealthy food choices. Plan to keep healthy foods like fruits, vegetables and nuts nearby in your desk, purse or car to sooth your mood.

It’s important to bring eating into your awareness. Noticing patterns in foods choices and behaviors will help you make better decisions in the future.  Not sure what to eat? The USDA can help www.choosemyplate.gov.

Track your successes: Don’t limit yourself in how you measure success. The scale is only one way and maybe not the best because the weather and food additives will cause the scale to fluctuate. Monitor your clothing size, measure your waist, legs, and arms, and monitor how tight or loose your clothes feel.

Keep track of your food choices too. How may fruits, vegetables and whole grains are you eating? Not enough check this out www.YourJuicePlus.com. Most importantly monitor how you feel and how your body is working. With better food choices comes energy, better sleep, improved digestion, lower blood pressure, weight loss and many other health benefits.

Track your goals:  While your long-term goal may be to lose 10, 25, 50 or more pounds, you need small goals to keep your motivation up. Focus on improved healthy and vitality. Being skinny in your casket really isn’t what you are shooting for. You can’t control your weight but you can control your habits. Make goals you have control of such as eat 1 more fruit and veggie per day, exercise 30 minutes and go to bed early enough to get 8 hours of sleep.

So what’s your plan to get and stay healthy? What’s the plan to support your employees to make healthier choices at work? When you look down the road what do you see in your future and your company’s future? If It’s not health then you still have time it’s never too late to get started down the road to better health.  

Need some help? Then ask a wellness consultant, certified health coach or health professional find a program that’s right for you and those you work with.  

Your partner in health, 

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA

Certified Health Coach 

Wellness Consultant 

C2 Your Health LLC

LinkedIN 

Be Strong - Commit to Health

We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face … we must do what we think we cannot. – Eleanor Roosevelt

When it comes to your health what’s getting in your way? Work? A habit? Or both? I say both. Do you stay at work too late, work past lunch, meet in restaurants? These are all habits that contribute to unhealthy work habits that contribute to your poor health. Just because you may not be experiencing sickness or disease right this moment it doesn’t mean your body isn’t collecting the ingredients to create cancer or some other chronic disease.  

Our work environments may differ however we all have unhealthy food close at hand. Many work-sites have vending machines, refrigerators, microwaves, food trucks, convenience stores and fast food joints nearby so you don’t waste any time getting your lunch. Or maybe you are one out of five Americans who work from home? Even though healthy foods could be as close as your refrigerator I’m thinking what I will find are frozen pizzas, chicken nuggets or cheese sticks in your freezer. Let’s not mention the food cupboard filled with those fast, processed the foods your family likes.  You know the ones, chips, cookies, snack cakes and candy. 

Or maybe it’s this? Where ever you work it’s been another hectic day at work. On impulse, you grab an extra-large candy bar during your afternoon break. You know it’s not good for you so you plan to take just a few bites. But before you know it, you’ve polished off the whole thing. Remind you of anyone? You maybe? 

All these choices make you feel better at least temporarily. Then remorse sets in along with a good dose of stomach upset, foggy thinking, low energy and a few more pounds. All of this is followed by thinking “I can’t believe I ate that, I’m bad”. 

Is this the story of your life? How do you make those healthy food choices in the face of all the obstacles? 

Here’s how start with recommitting and find the courage to preserver.

Does it take courage to make healthy food choices? You bet it does! When it comes to your health it takes courage is to hold yourself accountable for your actions. By accepting responsibility for your decisions, honoring your commitments you become courageous and will find new resolve to move forward. And what a wonderful since of mastery and accomplishment you feel! 

It’s never too late to get your courage up. Are you ready?

The first step is resolve. Recommit. Be courageous.

It takes courage to let go of the literally thousands of thoughts in your head that sabotage your actions and goals. It takes courage to not follow the crowd and speak up for your health. It takes courage to change your daily habits. It takes courage to stand up for you face the fear of joking and teasing from your peers for choosing health. And it takes even more courage to persist and recommit every day. Here’s the thing the more courage you use the more you have, the better you feel and the closer you are to healthier life you desire and deserve.

Are you ready? Click here to read to whole article in Small Biz Forward.

Your partner in health, 

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA

C2 Your Health LLC

Certified Health Coach 

Wellness Consultant 

Worksite Wellness: Guys All Aboard

 

Let’s face it. We all think it. Men are just not interested in their health. It’s not “manly”.  Really? This stereotypical view of men is they are not interested in improving their health is on its way out. More and more men are interested in what they can do to develop a healthy lifestyle.   However there is a great divide between wanting to do something and actually putting it into practice.  Wanting a healthier life will not make it happen.  This is true at home and at work. 

So what’s the hold up? Men have a different sense about the world than women for this reason it's important to note the barriers to engaging in healthy practices are different for men than women when developing wellness programing especially if there are more men than women where you work. 

One of the most commonly asked questions people ask when they start a wellness program at a worksite that is predominately men is usually 'how do you get men to come along?'

To start it's important to identify what those barriers are at your workplace when deciding on wellness programing.  In the article Big Lottery Fund: Engaging Men in Your Project: A Good Practice Guide the author states the most common barriers noted are men are less inclined to seek out help, have a fear of disapproval such as being seen as not "manly" and in some situations feel "unwelcomed".

For worksites that are predominately men then programing needs to overcome these barriers to increase work-site wellness engagement and participation.  When considering programing consider interacting with men through peer networks and influencing partnerships in connection to activities men enjoy such as sporting events, festivals, family fun days, and community events. It is also important to include influential partners and family members to influence men's health wellness decisions and to get medical problems checked out. Include family members in the educational programing, health screening information, and nurse answer hotlines to support them. Here are some other ideas... 

1. Team challenges are becoming more popular in the work place. It is a call to engage in a contest or competition with a health wellness focus. Teams compete against each other for prizes or rewards.
2. Sport is increasingly being recognized as an effective way to engage men and boys in practices that can enhance their health and wellbeing. Partner with local sports team, youth team or create sports teams.
3. Social connections such as Facebook and Twitter are great ways to increase engagement by raising awareness for employees and their families. 
4. Movember is a men's health movement connected to an event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as prostate cancer and other male cancers, and associated charities. You can join this movement or make your own. 
5. Celebrate Men’s Health Week the seconded week in June to engage men in healthy activities, develop an appropriate understanding of what factors are affecting their health, services that  encourage the use of the local resources.   

In an article How to Get Men to Participate in Worksite Wellness Programs written by Lisa Stoval the recommendation is to "... piggyback your wellness efforts on this popular health campaign and bring attention to men's health issues at your worksite. Like most wellness efforts, you have a better chance of reaching men if you develop a program that is specifically targeted to them." 

Engaging men in healthy behaviors at work has many benefits; most importantly it just makes sense. 

Your partner in health,

Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA

Wellness Consultant