The Fourth of July is one of our most popular national holidays. It’s high summer, the atmosphere is festive, and everybody loves a party, so why not find ways to get in on the fun? It will thrill your employees and make you a hero for a day – what’s not to like about that? If you’re struggling to come up with ideas, here are a few suggestions to get your mind turning on the subject.
Cater An Old Fashioned Bar-B-Q
Most companies do a terrible job at holding cookouts, whatever the occasion. They wind up being so structured that they’re just not any fun. Spend a bit of time and money on this. Hire a great catering company to do it right, and don’t bog the festivities down with a ton of rules.
Instead, set a few basic parameters (ie – “we need at least three people on the phones at all times”) and let your employees figure it out for themselves. You provide the food and fun, and just let them enjoy it for a day.
Decorations (And More)!
This one’s obvious, and very easy to do. Put an employee committee together and give them a budget. Let them come up with festive decorating ideas, and don’t shy away from the notion of allowing your employees to “dress up” for the occasion, either. It’s a fun, low cost, high impact way of getting everyone into the spirit of the day.
Get Out Of The Office
This takes the catered BBQ idea to the next level. Instead of holding the cookout on your property, what about just closing up shop for the day and heading to an area park (or maybe even a dog park?). Even better if the park just “happens” to lie along a parade route, giving you free entertainment in addition to great food.
Invite Everybody
Wherever you hold your Fourth of July feast, whether it’s at the office or somewhere “off campus,” open it up to the friends and families of your employees, and maybe their pets too. Why not turn the 4th of July celebration into a fun “dog day” as well? After all, most everybody loves dogs, and it’ll add a great deal of character and charm to the occasion.
The bottom line is, you don’t have to spend a fortune to bring the celebration to your employees. You can keep things simple if that’s your preference, or really go all out and make it a day to remember. Mix and match these ideas as you see fit. The most important thing is, if you’re going to do it, do it right. Don’t get bogged down in rules, just set the stage and let everybody have fun.