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Halloween costumes at work
- October 27th, 2009
- 22 Comments
Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying Rachel pointed out yesterday. Plenty of you probably think, “And?” because you’re not big on dressing up. At least not on the job. Normally I’d be with you. When colleagues chase me around the office on St. Patrick’s Day, threatening to pinch me if I’m not wearing green, I can’t help but feel a little weird. But for Halloween, I support costumes in the workplace. Why? Because any excuse to take casual dress to a new level is OK by me.
So, in that spirit, here are some ideas for workplace Halloween costumes. If you have any of your own, please chime in!
- A Day Off — Using black lettering, write October 30, 2009 or November 1, 2009 on an orange shirt. When people ask what you are, say, “A day off!”
- Happy Hour — Wrap a tie around your head and carry around an empty (yes, empty) martini glass with you throughout the day. At 5 p.m., scream, “Happy hour!”
- Pink Slip — No one ever wants to be served the dreaded pink slip at work. Wear a pink slip over your work clothes and chase your co-workers.
- Running Late — Show up to the office with messy hair and disheveled clothes with your pajamas showing underneath.
- Vending Machine — Dress in black and fasten snacks to yourself with the cost of each item displayed. To be really evil, place an “out of order” sign on the real vending machine and charge your co-workers for your snacks. When they pay, make sure you throw their snacks on the ground as the vending machine does.
- Office Gossip — Make up fun stories about your co-workers. Fasten the stories to yourself and put the name of your favorite tabloid magazine or gossip blog on a hat. Hang around the water cooler and invite people to read the latest news.
- Headhunter — Carry a mannequin or doll head around with you, holding it by the hair.
- Post-it Note — Wear all yellow. When people say “trick or treat” at your cube, pass out real Post-it notes.
- Red Tape — Buy red tape and tape it all over your clothes and cubicle. When people ask what you are, make them cut through some red tape to get the answer.
- Leftover — Wrap yourself in aluminum foil and give yourself an aluminum swan hat. Place a sign on your chest that says, “Anything left after 4 p.m. on Friday will be thrown away!”
Here are some ideas that take a bit more work, but are even more unique:
- Missing Person — Wear all white and use poster board to make a hat that resembles a milk carton. On another piece of poster board, place a picture of an employee who recently left the company and label them missing.
- Floating Holiday — Dress as your favorite holiday icon (Santa, Easter Bunny, Leprechaun, etc.) Place cotton around your shoes to look like clouds.
- Boss or Co-worker — Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery…but keep it fun. This could veer into passive aggressive territory.
- Suggestion Box — Take a large cardboard box and fasten rope so you can wear it like a barrel. Write “suggestions” on the box and take the slips of paper with your co-workers’ suggestions. Make sure to respond to them by the end of the day.
About Anthony Balderrama
Anthony Balderrama writes about hiring trends, workplace issues and job search tactics for CareerBuilder.com and its blog The Work Buzz. He was born and raised in Dallas (115° degrees isn’t hot!) before moving to Chicago (-23° isn’t cold!). He studied creative writing, therefore everything he writes is usually cut in half once he realizes he spent 400 words just on the intro. He knows that looking for a job and dealing with co-workers are not always fun activities, and reading about them is even less thrilling. That’s why he’ll take any opportunity he can to mention his favorite TV show or band in an article. Basically Anthony’s doing whatever he can to avoid hate mail.
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[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
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[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
[...] Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying… [...]
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[...] Halloween costumes at work : The Work Buzz Wear a pink slip over your work clothes and chase your co-workers. Running Late — Show up to the office with messy hair and disheveled clothes with your pajamas showing underneath. Vending Machine — Dress in black . [...]