November is American Indian Heritage Month — perfect for engaging a little history on Thanksgiving. (See the History Channel’s webpage on the First Thanksgiving.)

November 9 is National Sweet Tooth Day. Perfect for bringing in all the last remnants of Halloween candy. You could also pass out ballots so people can vote on their favorite sugary treat. Then make sure some of the winning candy appears in the workplace!

November 12 is “National Pizza With The Works except Anchovies Day.” Go Figure … Well, this ought to make it easy to decide what everyone’s having for lunch on the 12th.

The 13th is National Pudding Day, and all sorts of options are flooding my mind. Personally, I like the idea of everybody bringing in a bowl of their favorite pudding, and having a secret vote for which pudding is best. Of course, the winner ought to get a day off!

One of the most unique days to celebrate is National Wear Brown Shoes Day. (Some sources state this day is November 18, others say it’s December 4.) For whichever day you choose, think about getting a brown shoe made into a trophy (visit your local trophy shop) and award it to the person who wears the coolest brown shoes to work that day. Have a fun little ceremony to award the trophy. Options: The employee could actually keep the trophy, or you could have the winner display it in his/her workspace until next year — when it gets awarded to someone else.

On the medical front, the first week of November is Medical Staff Services Week and the second week is Allied Health Professions Week. When you mention health care, most people think of doctors and nurses, but scores of other jobs exist in that field. It would be great to identify a health-care profession beside doctors or nurses and find some way to show your appreciation (example: CNA, phlebotomist, ambulance driver, medical technologist [those who work in ‘the lab’], medical receptionist, etc.)

The week prior to Thanksgiving is American Education Week.  For workplace education, perhaps people should look into taking an online train the trainer course (yes, that’s a plug), or registering for my two-day train the trainer workshop next month (yes, that’s another plug).  ;-)  

Thanksgiving is the 22nd this year, and the 23rd is National Cashew Day–so make sure there are plenty of nuts on hand. If your workplace is closed the Friday after Thanksgiving, you could wrap up those cashews and give them out before Thanksgiving.

By the way, the last week of November is National Game and Puzzle Week. You could pass out brain teasers (such as those found here) or do other fun games.  Of course, this particular ‘game’ is just too weird . . . .  Have a great month!
 

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Filed in Work, Motivation, Workplace, Corporate Culture, Retention