\nI walked into the office with a hesitant step, equal parts excited and full of dread that my friends and co-workers remembered my special day.\u00a0 The streamers, confetti, and banners decorating my desk gave me pause\u2026 and a smile.\u00a0 Today<\/em>, I thought to myself, is going to be a fantastic day!<\/em>
\nI was right; this birthday turned out to be a good one.\u00a0 You see, I\u2019m lucky enough to work in a place that believes in celebrating their people, and I\u2019ve got the inside scoop on what we do here to make everyone feel special.
\nRewind to my first week on the job when I learned that part of my role was to celebrate our people.\u00a0 Initially I thought, What\u2019s the big deal?<\/em>
\nThe first few birthday and work anniversaries I helped celebrate lacked my wholehearted capabilities.\u00a0 Good enough<\/em>, I told myself. This isn\u2019t that important.<\/em>\u00a0 I was wrong. I learned it\u2019s VERY important.\u00a0 You can see it in the faces of the people you\u2019re celebrating and their actions for the rest of the day. Talk about an instant morale boost!\u00a0 While I couldn\u2019t feel their feelings, I know they felt good about what was done for them.
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\nCelebrating everything for your staff can seem like a daunting task.\u00a0 I\u2019m here to tell you that it\u2019s easier than you think.\u00a0 While I\u2019m no longer leading the charge on celebrations here at ETE, I still feel very much a part of it because of the best practices we have in place to make sure no one walks in uncelebrated on their birthday, even if they think<\/em> they prefer to.
\nThese are the lessons I\u2019ve learned along the way to help you celebrate your wonderful people:<\/p>\n
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- Get organized. The more people you have, the more dates you need to keep track of.\u00a0 We use a shared calendar with birthdays and milestones.\u00a0 That way, we can keep track, set reminders, and avoid cluttering up our own calendars.<\/li>\n
- It takes a village. Depending on how many people you\u2019ve got, you probably need a hand with this.\u00a0 Get your managers involved and ask your team for volunteers.\u00a0 After all, it\u2019s a lot of fun to make people happy.<\/li>\n
- Start small. Decide what you\u2019re going to celebrate as a company.\u00a0 Work anniversaries, birthdays, or something else significant happening? Pick one and roll with it.\u00a0 It may also be helpful to set some limits or establish some standardization.<\/li>\n
- Keep it personal. If decorations and confetti aren\u2019t your thing, no worries.\u00a0 The single nicest thing you can do is to write a personal note wishing someone a Happy Birthday or thanking them for a job well done.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
The time spent on making sure I felt loved was worth it.\u00a0 I thank my colleagues for the decorations, birthday signing, cake, beautiful flowers, and well wishes.\u00a0 My work family really turned my day into something, and because kindness is contagious in and out of the workplace, I\u2019m excited to pay it forward.<\/p>\n
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Girl Wonder has decorated a lot of desks in her day, but when it’s her turn to get celebrated, she remembers just how important it is to take the time (and confetti) to make people you work with feel special.<\/em>\u00a0Join the conversation below\u00a0or