Here’s How Much You Should Drink at Work Events If You Need To.
Alcohol is an essential part of being an adult, but allowing it to enter your work life can undermine your professionalism. If you expect to find yourself in the workplace – and even if your company is known for creating a rather noisy atmosphere at their parties – there are things to know about setting limits and how to enforce them, even if you are tempted by an open bar.
How much to drink at professional events
First, a professional event doesn’t have to be a cathartic night with a group of friends. You will be surrounded by people who pay you, so you better quench your thirst.
As a rule of thumb, don’t go out in advance for a drink. “Before the game,” a ritual that you may have been partial to in college, is not something you want to do before a professional event, if only to reduce the chances of involuntarily becoming careless during the night. As Natalie Lundstin, assistant dean for career and professional development at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center for Inside Higher Education wrote in 2019 , you should aim to cut your alcohol consumption by about 50 percent in professional meetings.
However, the temptation can be very strong, especially if there is an open bar. One way you can still hang out with a glass in hand is to replace any other drink with seltzer or soft drink. Oddly, it can be uncomfortable chatting without the tactile feel of a cup in your hand, but you may find party banter is just as stimulating if you sip ginger ale between alcoholic drinks.
Understand your company culture
Some firms, especially young ones, tend to encourage a more noisy atmosphere when it comes to corporate evenings. If you come from a company that encouraged you to take pictures at holiday parties but have recently moved to a less casual company, you should avoid repeating your old antics. The last thing you want to do is take your own life in your career because you are so excited by the idea of free drinks that you cannot control yourself.
Understand that there is a serious concern for your company and its HR team about responsibility stemming from the potential of a disgruntled employee doing what they shouldn’t.
Know your alcohol tolerance
If you are going to spend a couple of hours at a work party, have a maximum of two or three drinks. There is no reason to eat drinks, especially if you have a low tolerance. If you feel like there is more attention around you than you would like, try switching to a soft drink.
The work party should be your pre-party
If you’re going to have a good night out, consider the work party as a warm-up for the debauchery you want. You can — especially if there’s no work the next day, or if the office is particularly quiet the next morning — to plan a trip with a group of coworkers after you have enough time to facial at a company party.
Also keep in mind that the open bar usually has a free dinner, so use the work party as a way to feed your stomach with a dime of company to get ready for the night ahead.
The best way to think about the relationship between professional propriety and abundance of booze is this: you are not at a company event to get drunk (unless, of course, this is the explicit intent, as indicated by your CEO ). There will always be HR. people and other types of management tasked with keeping track of the company’s bottom line by tracking your potentially inappropriate behavior.
There will always be more party opportunities when these people are not around, so don’t risk your reputation if you act stupid when they look over your shoulder.