Valentine’s Day is just a couple of months away, which means you have an excuse to plan fun gatherings in the name of love.
You may think of Valentine’s Day as a holiday reserved for romantic relationships, but it’s about celebrating every type of love, including love toward employees. The cost of replacing an employee is estimated to be at least one-half of their annual salary. Let’s say that you are replacing a $50,000-a-year employee. It could cost you upwards of $25,000.
It pays to keep employees happy, and morale-building events can help do this. Valentine’s Day is the perfect occasion for one of these events, and to help make the magic happen, here are five tips for planning an office Valentine’s Day Extravaganza.
1. Plan a Surprise Party
Picture this: Employees expect nothing less than their usual Friday lunch meet-up at California Pizza Kitchen. But the restaurant is transformed into a party space when they arrive. Instead of eating and returning to the office, they clock out three hours early and mingle with co-workers. Nobody will be opposed to that scenario.
Surprises are a fun way to bring smiles to employees’ faces and escape the office grind for a few hours on love day. The surprise party can occur anywhere: a restaurant, conference room, banquet hall, or anywhere you choose. Surprises take extra orchestration and a lot of sneaking, but the payoff is well worth it.
2. Make It an Awards Ceremony
Whether you want to be serious, silly, or half-and-half, having an appreciation awards ceremony on Valentine’s Day can bring festivity to the office and give accolades and praise to those who have worked hard. Some award ideas include:
- Early Bird Award
- Walking Encyclopedia Award
- Organizational Wizard Award
- Deadline Diva Award
- Best Dressed Award
- Coffee Connoisseur Award
- Most Improved Employee Award
- Snack Champion Award
- Leading Lady Award
- Office Clown Award
Your party could be a red-carpet-themed award ceremony with an actual red carpet and stage to make it feel like a night in Hollywood. If you’re undecided about whether you want to go the silly or serious route, giving each person both a serious and silly award might be the perfect way to show appreciation and make employees laugh.
3. Orchestrate a Competitive Game Night
Which of your employees is the most competitive? You’ll find out when you plan a Valentine’s Day office-wide game night that couples as a team-building activity. Some ideas for the Valentine’s Day games and competitions include:
- A Heart Attack Scavenger Hunt: Who can find all the hearts in the least amount of time?
- Heart Bingo: There may not be much of a strategy, but who will be the lucky bingo winner?
- A Cook-Off (requires a kitchen space): Who can make the best heart-shaped pizza?
- An Escape Room: Who has the skills to solve riddles and crack the code of an escape room?
- Trivia: Who is the trivia king or queen? Only one way to find out!
- Charades: Who has the best acting skills? Who has the best guessing skills?
Games and competitions can be a fun way to snap out of work mode and into fun mode. Don’t forget to supply yummy food, drinks, and decorations to create ambiance.
4. Host a Meditation Class
A meditation class is often a massive hit for corporate retreats, so why not treat employees to one for Valentine’s Day? A meditation class can be the perfect way to let employees destress, relax deeply, and rejuvenate after a long day. Some ideas for meditation include:
• A Sound Bath
A sound bath is a form of meditation involving resonant sounds. The sounds create immersive rhythms that trigger relaxation and help reduce stress, anxiety, and overwhelm.
The resonant sounds activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which regulates heart rate and breathing. When the body embraces the rhythmic sounds, it often releases feel-good chemicals and even helps with physical pain.
• Hot Yoga
An office that sweats together stays together. One surefire way to release stress and get a good workout is to stretch the body in a sweltering studio. Enter hot yoga, an intense type of yoga where the temperature is at least 100 degrees, with the intent to sweat out toxins.
• Guided Meditation
If the team might benefit from deep relaxation, a guided meditation class is the perfect way to encourage it. With guided meditation, an instructor guides participants through a meditation session. Participants listen to the teacher’s instructions to help them focus on the present moment with the intent of deep relaxation, and any other objectives of the specific session.
Guided meditation caters to both novice and experienced meditators. It can aid in improving focus, sleep, brain fog, and emotional stability. It may also expose employees to something they want to do again or try themselves at home.
5. Book a Spa Day
Whether you create your spa in the office with professional masseuses and estheticians or take the team to a local spa for a day of beauty and relaxation, nobody will complain about a spa day. Think white fluffy robes, saunas, and mimosas. You’ll be the world’s greatest boss. And let’s be honest: a spa day would do you good, too.
This is an excellent option if you don’t want to plan or prepare too much. All you have to do is hire the right technicians (or choose the right spa), show up, and have a fabulous day.
Opinions may differ on Valentine’s Day, but everyone can get on board with a fun party, especially when it entails a get-out-of-work-free pass. And if there’s no time to plan one yourself, reach out to our business event planners in Los Angeles, Dallas, or D.C. Whether you want something small and intimate or big and loud, we know how to make it perfect in every way. We’ll help show the team some love through an unforgettable Valentine’s-themed event.