Babe. Just don’t.
I know you’ve probably got a list of reasons that it’ll be okay to get drunk at your Christmas party, but I’m squashing all of them.
It’s a terrible career move. So stick to lemonade and get drunk some other time.
28. Getting drunk at your work Christmas party – Transcript
[00:00:00] Hi, there I’m Bec McFarland the host of the Pop Your Career Podcast. As a career coach, I’m most passionate about helping my clients to discover their own personal flavour of career fulfillment. In this podcast, we are going to be exploring ways that you too can feel more fulfilled by your work. So strap yourself in, get ready for the ride. The tips around here are fast and in abundance.
[00:00:29] Hello. Hello. It’s Bec McFarland here helping you do better and be better in your career. And it is the 1st of December 2022 for those of you playing at home. And I feel like it would be remiss of me as we lead up to the silly season not to do an episode about getting drunk at your work [00:01:00] Christmas party.
[00:01:02] This is going to be a fairly short episode because really, I’m just here to tell you don’t do it. No matter what you think. No matter what you think your company culture is like or how cool your employers are or whatever, just don’t do it.
[00:01:27] Surely you’ve seen that like TikTok Trend or Instagram reel trend and it’s like, ‘don’t do it, girl. Don’t do it’. That’s me right now.
[00:01:40] I have spoken to so many people over the years who have told me that it’s okay because their boss is really cool, or you know, their employer kind of promotes that party atmosphere, but no matter what, it just never turns out really [00:02:00] great. Yeah, sure. You might be seen as the one who’s fun to hang around, but I can promise you, that like someone is always going to be judging you either to your face or behind your back. Normally, I wouldn’t suggest like altering your behaviour or doing things based on whether or not you’re going to get judged for them, because generally like I don’t really give a shit what other people think about me.
[00:02:29] But there’s a time and a place for it guys. Like if you want to go out with your friends and you want to rock on and party, drink to your heart’s content, like absolutely go for it. Just a side note, this is definitely not me advocating for for binge drinking, just fear information. I actually do not drink at all. So that’s definitely not what I’m saying.
[00:02:55] But if you do like to partake in that kind of behaviour, [00:03:00] please do it with your friends. Do it outside of work.
[00:03:03] I’ve had people say to me before that they think that sometimes as a leader it’s good to kind of let your hair down and have fun. The people that you work with and you know, like show them that you are not just like the boring, stiff old boss.
[00:03:20] And I can tell you that in a previous life I thought the same and I definitely did not stick to my own advice. But what I can tell you is, I’m super not proud of my behaviour in those instances either, and I am never looking back on those times and telling myself, ‘oh yeah, that was such a great idea to get drunk with your work colleagues’.
[00:03:54] Think if you’re in a leadership position, it is really your job to be a better role [00:04:00]model and to role model the kinds of behaviours and morals and ethics and values that the company support. And I know for myself like that’s not the kind of company that I would be wanting to represent, and that’s not the way that I would want to be representing a company either.
[00:04:24] So I’ve also heard people say things like, you know, ‘oh, but this was like the work Christmas party after party, and all of the bosses had gone home. So like, it’s fine now, isn’t it?’ And I’d still say like, it’s just, it’s never a great idea.
[00:04:44] Back when I was younger, and yes, I’m becoming that, that person who’s like ‘back in my day’. But roll with me here. Back in my day, we didn’t have social [00:05:00] media and you know, like camera phones and stuff. Like if you went out and you made a tit of yourself in public or in front of your work colleagues and stuff, like, sure there would be stories, but there definitely wouldn’t be photographic or video evidence. And these days you literally can’t even like step foot outside of your front door without a risk that somebody could be capturing you on a damn TikTok or you know, some other social media platform.
[00:05:33] So you might think that it’s all okay because the bosses have already gone home. But you can bet that firstly, there will always be stories. There have always been stories. And that video and photographic evidence is something that you really don’t need to be haunting you for the rest of your career. I am not going to [00:06:00] bang on about this anymore.
[00:06:02] If you think that I am like the cautious old lady and you don’t want to listen to my advice, then that is your prerogative. But just let me say that as a career coach, as somebody who has worked in people and culture across many different work environments, I would just strongly say, save it for another time. Save it for a time when you’re out with your non-work related friends that it’s not actually a work event. Just keep it clean. You know. I hope I’ve managed to change your mind and bring you around to my way of thinking. Happy December as we roll into the Christmas and holiday period. Have an amazing [00:07:00] week and I will see you next time.
[00:07:03] And you know, next time I’ll probably be less Grinchy. Maybe. I’ll see you soon.
[00:07:12] Thanks so much for listening to the Pop Your Career podcast. I hope that you’ve enjoyed today’s tips and that you found value in what I’ve shared with you. If you like your career advice quick and entertaining, I would love for you to subscribe. Also leave me a rating and a review. If you want to continue the conversation, come and join me over on social media. You can find me everywhere at Pop Your Career. I’ll see you soon.
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