By Thomas Davis, DNAP, MAE, CRNA
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“Halloween is not only about putting on a costume, but it’s about finding the imagination and costume within ourselves.”
— Elvis Duran
Halloween is exciting and full of surprises; however, it is no surprise that the festive event also contains several lessons which will enhance team collaboration, staff engagement and the overall effectiveness of the designated leader. Look beyond gawdy makeup and treats in the lounge and heed the wisdom arising from Halloween leadership lessons.
Identity matters. At a costume party it is challenging to guess who the person is concealed by the costume and not knowing the identity until the masks are removed. In contrast, at the workplace, a team must always know who the leader is in terms of the personal values and leadership style. Honesty, integrity, and consistency must be your hallmark characteristics and they must be apparent regardless of the color of your hair or the funny glasses that you wear. If you want to scare and demoralize your team, show up as a different person every day.
Creativity generates empowerment. Policies, procedures, and protocols; they are essential but can leave workers feeling like robots. Give team members the latitude to decorate the workplace and wear work-appropriate costumes on Halloween. Reward creativity and then let the spirit of the holiday be a catalyst for the team to apply inventiveness to problem solving. Not only will the mood of the team be elevated, but the team will also feel empowered to resolve outstanding issues.
You can be whoever you want to be. Once you decide the character you want to be for Halloween, it is not difficult to find a costume and props to transform yourself into the new person. Likewise, once you decide who you want to be as a professional, a little time, effort and planning will enable you to acquire the new role. Halloween is a great opportunity for a leader to learn about the desires of workers and then arrange professional development to take each person to a new level of performance.
Ghosts can only scare you when you let them in. Do not let your workplace become a haunted house by allowing evil spirits to mingle with your team. Fear and paranoia are paralyzing and kill staff morale. Behaviors such as gossip, blaming, and passive/aggressive activity are the evil spirits that make everybody leery about scary things that could jump out at them. Ban gossip, outlaw blaming, and diffuse fear by openly discussing problems; never ignore the elephant in the room.
Collaboration fosters courage. In the famous scary movie, Nightmare on Elm Street, Freddy Kruger only had power when people feared him, and he always selected a person separated from the group to be his next victim. In the workplace, collaboration produces a sense of community and knowing that others have their back inspires individuals to address challenges that they otherwise may have avoided. Team members who work together to plan and pull off a workplace social event will stand united to solve other workplace challenges. Say yes to reasonable Halloween activities, then turn it into a teambuilding event.
Teambuilding is enjoyable. The purpose of teambuilding is to enhance personal relationships and foster collaboration among team members. Halloween is an occasion that begs for workers to collaborate by decorating the workplace, donning an altered ego, and planning a festive day. The best workplaces reward strong performance by planning special days to recognize the effort that the team puts forth daily.
Halloween is a holiday that can be spooky but do not let it spook you. The gremlins and goblins who lurk in the shadows are no match for a united group so focus on teambuilding reward your team with a festive day. While you are at it, plan for celebrations and teambuilding activities for the upcoming Thanksgiving and New Year holidays.
Tom is an experienced leader, author, and requested speaker. Click here for a video introduction to Tom’s talk topics.