Welcome to another week and it's starting to get a little festive here at Cloud 9 Towers and this week although we're not quite ready to hang up our Christmas stockings in the hope that we have all been very good this year and deserve a visit from Santa, the talk of presents is fairly rife!
The annual office Secret Santa draw has taken place and along with it comes lots of head scratching and whispering about what to get and for whom. There are only six of us here at Cloud 9 so if it's this bad here, we can't imagine what it must be like at larger companies - the mind boggles!
So whilst many of you are probably looking forward to the
parties and the goodies that we get most years from the fabulous and very generous venues that we deal with, some of you may well be dreading the day when you have to officially exchange gifts at work as part of your Office Secret Santa.
A really bad Secret Santa gift
could potentially be highly embarrassing for you and the recipient of
the gift as well and whilst we don't think any of these will be an issue here at Cloud 9, we did think it might be timely to look at some highly inappropriate gifts, just in case you are stuck for ideas. These are more suggestions of what not to get, rather than those that should be high up on your shopping list so here are some things to avoid!
While a Gift Token might be an easy option, it's really giving out the vibe that 'I don't know you and I am not really interested
in getting to know you. So I haven't put any thought into your gift'.
It doesn't matter if the person you are buying for is addicted to shopping at Amazon or only buys their clothes at a certain high street shop, a gift token is a pretty lazy option!
Now you might be involved in a little office romance and whether it is a secret or no big deal, giving a gift that is really personal such as lingerie to
somebody you work with, is a bit of a grey area. Even if you think its a really great idea to get a pair of bright red pants covered with pictures of snowman along with a matching bra, is this something that is really going to be appreciated? It might be funny, but probably not appropriate, especially as for ever and a day, the question will be asked - wearing your snowman bra and knickers today?
Whether it's an insurance company, a stakeholder or a supplier, you can guarantee to get at least one calendar, wall chart of diary towards the end of the year for the following year. They might be beautifully printed with great photography, but if you have one stuffed in a drawer then there is a good chance your colleague has one too - so are they really going to appreciate this sort of gift? We think not!
Whilst we are talking about things stuck in drawers, you might have had a really naff gift as part of last years Secret Santa, or stuffed in a drawer something hideous that your Great Aunt Mavis gave you on your birthday, but irrespective, do try and avoid something recycled. If you think this is the best way
to recycle that awful china ornament of a hippo then unless it is yet to be
unwrapped, chances are you are giving somebody a dusty, although unused
gift. And used items are a strict no no. Especially if the recipient posts their presents on social media and the original gift giver spots it online....a little awkward...
You might think that Fred in Accounts (we don't have a Fred, but a Carol) always has his head stuck in a book so you might think a Self Help Book would go down a treat. Wrong. Self Help books are possibly the most
boring gifts one could give a co-worker, unless it's a really funny one
by a well-known author. These books almost always send out the wrong
message: You are not very good at life, here's a book to help you. Its
ten times worse if you end up giving such a book to your boss or
super-boss. Do you really think you will get away with gifting a book
like Management for Dummies to your boss and still remain in good books?
Home made gifts are a tricky one. You might be qualified to win next years Great British Bake Off and be able to supply an incredible gift basket of Christmas Cakes and Cookies that would make Nigella and Delia envious, but if you are more imaginative than crafty it might be better to stick to shop bought. Would you really want to get a necklace made of ring pulls from your daily can of pop or a painting of... well you are not sure what it is?
It might be that one of your colleagues has a little body odour problem, or could do with some mouthwash in a morning and or might need to lose a few pounds to even be considered obese, but a Secret Santa gift is not the time to make a point. So think carefully about wrapping up toiletries, mouthwash or a copy of the latest diet book. It will embarrass the recipient and make you look awful too. The same mantra applied to anyone who may have stopped smoking this year or quit drinking - is an engraved lighter or bottle of vodka really the way to go?
Okay so this might not have been terribly helpful in terms of what to actually buy, but at least you know not what to get. All of us here at Cloud 9 Event Management wish you success with your Christmas Shopping, and have a great week!
