by Rob Purifoy

Created on: January 02, 2009   Last Updated: September 19, 2009

When it comes Christmas parties, take a look around before you grab a drink. If the management is drinking bottled water it's time to be conservative, have a few drinks and leave the lamp shades where they belong.

At most company parties you may be watched a bit by management and others, especially if you are new to the company. A friend of mine was denied a new company car because he was pretty well smashed at the last party. Small things like having too good of a time can be bad for business and have it's consequences. A company Christmas party should be looked upon as a reward from management or the owners, and not a free-for-all. One exception to that rule is that if you work with true partiers, where the owners are just as likely to get as wild as the employees. Usually sales type jobs have the most notorious partiers, and in fact, if you are not having more than a good time people think something is wrong with you.

Treat the office party as you would any other social gathering, you wouldn't go to a restaurant and standout as the loudest person there. The same is true with an office party, even though it's called a party, don't treat it as such. this is a good time to keep your wits about you, maybe get a one on one conversation with a member of management and impress them with your conversational skills. The office party can be seen as a place where you have a captive audience with owners and management which could lead to moving up within the company. You'll look even better if the others are falling over their chairs and acting like fools, and you're not.

I have to say however that I speak only as a side line spectator and can't practice what I preach. I have been in sales since 1990 and the parties we end up getting invited to are vendors and partners that expect nothing less than getting us in a state that requires a cab ride home. I know lucky me huh? Not really, I'd rather not have to wake up the next day and hope I didn't make a complete fool of myself. The only saving grace is that it's expected and that I won't be the only fool there.

These polar opposite examples of office parties are given to show that the main thing is to know your venue. In any case, I would let someone else start the monkey business before you do. At least there will be a comparison or a baseline of how wild, or tame, the evening may be. When at the party it's a good idea to think ahead to the next day in a sense. Ask yourself if you are preserving your future employment by your actions tonight.

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