How to keep your employees motivated before Christmas holidays

However, this should not affect their productivity. We are offering seven ways to keep teams motivated and energized during the final days of the year.

Celebrate the Season

Trying to pretend that the holidays aren’t happening is a bad idea — just embrace the holiday season. Start with office decoration, choose relaxing and festive music, remind employees to wear festive attire (if they wish).

People stay more motivated at work when it actually feels like the season is coming, ignoring it is a bad idea. A cheerful environment leads to better  productivity and reduces stress at the workplace. Such activities like a casual lunch or a holiday trivia game can encourage togetherness. 

Read more:

9 Ways To Keep Your Employees Engaged This Holiday Season

Read

Organize a Secret Santa Gift Exchange

A Secret Santa tradition is a great way to bring laughter into the workplace. Establish a reasonable price limit for a gift and make it optional, so everyone will feel comfortable when taking up in this event. People can participate with funny, elaborate, or even handmade gifts.

Collect the names of all participants and randomly assign each person someone to give a gift to — this can be done with names in a hat or through an online generator, like online Secret Santa organizer. You can also encourage participants to fill out short wish lists or share a few interests to make gifting easier. On the day of the exchange, create a festive atmosphere with decorations, snacks, and maybe even a guessing game to reveal the Santas.

Here are some ideas for a Secret Santa reveal.

1. Who’s Your Santa?" Clue Game. Before the exchange, ask each Secret Santa to write a short, playful clue about themselves (e.g., “I drink three cups of coffee before 9 AM” or “I once totally blanked on my boss’s name.”). After the gifts are opened, read the clues aloud one by one and let the recipient guess who their Secret Santa is.
2. Santa Bingo. Playing bingo is a fun and stress-free activity. Prepare Santa Bingo cards in advance with information about the gift-givers (e.g., "This person has a cat," "Loves spicy food," "Commutes by bike"). As people open gifts, others try to guess their Secret Santa by matching traits to coworkers. The first to fill a row or card wins a small prize!

Try our MySanta app

You can create wishlists, add exclusions, and communicate with your gifree secretly. Moreover, there is an option to track gifts and ensure that everyone buys a present on time.

Start

Set Clear, Achievable Goals

Many employees often struggle with multiple projects that need to be completed by the end of the year. Remind them to use the SMART framework, which defines goals as specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. With such a system, it is easier for them to stay focused and motivated.

Prioritize tasks based on impact. Not all tasks are of equal importance. Identify high-impact tasks that need to be completed before the holidays and schedule these first.

Recognize and Reward Efforts

Recognizing employees is crucial for supporting their motivation and satisfaction with their jobs.

Here are some compelling statistics highlighting its impact:​

• Increased Motivation and Productivity: 79% of employees who receive recognition and rewards feel motivated to work harder, while 63% feel more committed to their employer. Source
• Improved Retention Rates: Organizations with effective recognition programs experience a 31% lower turnover rate compared to those without such programs. ​Source
• Enhanced Engagement: Employees who feel recognized are 4 times more likely to be engaged in their work. Source
• Stronger Company Culture: 80% of HR leaders agree that recognition programs improve workplace culture, leading to higher employee satisfaction. ​Source

Keep this in mind and take time to reward hard-working employees with thank-you notes and various types of awards. Do it sincerely, and don’t overlook employees’ contributions to the company's success. Also, consider small rewards such as gift cards or extra time off. Employees should see that their boss recognizes the efforts and personal sacrifices they make for the benefit of the company.

Offer Flexibility 

Why not show support and understanding to your team by offering flexibility, such as shifting their hours, allowing them to work from home, or taking some days off to cope with personal issues? Employees might feel overwhelmed trying to juggle both work and home tasks simultaneously, so they need some breaks during working hours.

If the boss expresses compassion, it will help build more loyalty to the company. Support and encouragement help employees stay engaged and do their best at work.

Read more:

Remote Christmas traditions to bring your employees closer

Read

Celebrate the Year’s Successes

Reflect on employees’ accomplishments at the end of the year by organizing a team meeting. Emphasize major achievements and spotlight employees who have made notable contributions. Such acts will inspire people to maintain a sense of purpose and keep striving for success.

Here are some meaningful and simple ways to award employees :

Share What’s Coming Next

For many employees, it is highly important to realize that they are contributing to a greater goal. Let them see a bigger picture and share your ideas about forthcoming projects for the next year.

Brainstorm new ideas together and discuss the nearest plans for the future. Such frank and trustful communication can increase the motivation and desire to work, so employees will enthusiastically get down to work after holidays.

It also helps build a sense of stability, direction,and purpose. Don’t forget to discuss the necessary changes related to the new positions and growth opportunities.

Lead by Example

Your own calm attitude and concentration on work will help employees to relax, stay positive and focused. In case you show irritation or signs of burnout, it may reflect negatively on people in the office.

Demonstrating balance, commitment to the common goals, and creating the festive atmosphere as well will inspire everyone to mirror the same behaviour. Model healthy work habits and support the atmosphere where motivation will thrive.

Leaders who inspire and motivate through a clear vision and personal example are highly effective. A meta-analysis of 50 studies involving over 21,000 participants found that transformational leadership is strongly linked to increased intrinsic motivation among employees. ​Source

FAQs