Tough bosses aren’t fun, but Halloween is the most exciting work celebration of the year. To get your boss on board with Halloween festivities, you should have a collection of ideas at the ready…even if that means making a little PowerPoint presentation to justify your purchase of Halloween decorations.
Here are some ideas to start your party planning and pitching. You can keep your office gimmicks totally professional, on theme, and extraordinarily exciting.
A New Take on Scary
What types of costumes or characters might not appear scary at first glance, but really terrify many individuals? A costume contest to reward creativity can really help people think outside of the box here. While office environments should avoid the political and go beyond the idea that an IRS representative is the scariest costume possible, there are plenty of ideas out there. Consider something truly frightening to the average office worker, like those oft-forgotten leftovers in the office fridge!
Make it a Monster Mash-up
Have you ever heard of a mash-up, where two songs are combined into one to create something new, appealing to fans of either song? You can do the same thing with Halloween decorations and costumes. Merge two party themes in a way that’s quirky and financially accessible for all participants. For example: black and white spooky surprises. This could include your classic Bride of Frankenstein, or a little black dress from the closet adorned with some spiderwebs for extra spook.
Ghastly Gaming
Casino nights have become popular office party themes in the last several years, where workers get fake money to gamble at casino game stations. Why not put a frighteningly fun Halloween twist on this trend? Gamble on spooky trivia contest entries, prize drawings, and classic casino games (with Halloween-themed card decks) to make it sincerely spooky. The winners can earn chocolate bars or fun desk accessories.
Murder Mystery Mayhem
It was Brenda, in accounting, with the calculator! A “murder” could happen in a variety of ways in an office setting, and creating an original murder mystery with clues left out during the day is a fun way to keep the office entertained Halloween-style, culminating in an all out blast at the conclusion of the workday. Whodunit? Maybe the boss did!
Spooky Backdrops and Photos
Halloween events in the office are a lot more enjoyable if you have something to remember them by—and we don’t mean a few stray pieces of candy to take home to the kids. Consider renting a festive backdrop so your coworkers can take pictures and selfies in front of it. Or, volunteer to make this happen with some digital editing! You can get your boss to invest in the idea by mentioning that it’d make a great social media post and morale activity.
Monster Movies at Lunch
Do you have a break room or cafeteria at the office? If so, consider playing some classic spooky movies like the original Frankenstein or Beetlejuice during the workday. This can give people a festive boost while grabbing a coffee refill or creating new bonds around their favorite films.
Cocktails and Mocktails
Turn it up a notch with Halloween-themed cocktails and mocktails, whether during the office day, or after. The era of the beer fridge is over, and it’s time to embrace sweet, spooky, fun beverages with a bar rental you can keep stocked. Here are some delicious drinks to consider serving up:
- The Vampire’s Kiss: For the mocktail version, make a standard Shirley Temple with grenadine and ginger ale. Instead of cherries, add vampire teeth props or candies. Serve on a square napkin with two drops of red food coloring. To make it with alcohol, just add some cherry vodka.
- Butterbeer: Got some fans of the wizarding world at work? Surely, they’ll like some butterbeer! Using cream soda as base, add caramel extract, butter extract, and top it with whipped cream. For the alcoholic version, add butterscotch schnapps to liven it up.
- Webby Chocolate Delight: For the non-alcoholic version of this beverage, you can use chocolate milk or almond chocolate milk with a splash of cream. Decorate the rim of the glass with melted marshmallow in a spiderweb pattern, and add edible spiders to the edge of the glass. To add alcohol, include some Bailey’s Irish Creme.
Creepy Tunes
Don’t forget to add some ambiance to your office Halloween party with the right soundtrack. You can find appropriate music on streaming platforms like YouTube, Spotify, or Pandora. To make it even more collaborative, you can ask coworkers to add suggestions to the playlist.
Ghosts and Games in the Conference Room
Embrace the theme of ghosts and games in your office’s conference room. Take advantage of the large conference room table to lay out some fun Halloween-themed games and puzzles, which could even include a custom-printed image of your office building with some creepy creatures in front of it. Decorate with some good old-fashioned sheet-ghosts hanging from the ceiling tiles or tied around the chairs. This is also a great place to put out a “guess the ghosts” candy jar, where coworkers try to guess how many marshmallows are in a jar.
Practical Prizes
While everyone likes winning cool stuff, it might be more cost effective for your company to provide a more practical surprise. This can be an ideal way to get your boss to buy into the Halloween gimmicks. For example, everyone might like an extra day off or a shot at a reserved parking space in front of the office. Come up with exciting names for the prizes, like “permission to ghost the workplace” to keep it in theme!
Add to the Ambiance
Whether you’re looking at floating candles, low lighting, or sound effects playing in the background, there are plenty of ambiance-related sound effects that are free or low-cost.
Most people are enthusiastic about embracing a fun Halloween workday or afterparty, but with the right food, drink, activities, and flair, even the most discerning boss can give it the go-ahead. Do your best to find gimmicks that fit with the work atmosphere and aren’t too distracting or costly so you can please accounting and the most begrudging bosses.