Explore the special days and themes for the month of October!
This calendar is a guide for you and your team to use as you plan meaningful, internal events and activities for October. This month has a focus on Breast Cancer Awareness and LGBTQ+ history. It is also an important time to support working parents on your team and help to improve work-life balance, as well as celebrate fun holidays such as Oktoberfest, Halloween, and Diwali!
Add Epoch’s calendar to be ahead of 2022’s cultural and holiday events!
The world truly runs on coffee, especially for employees who need to get through a busy day at work. Where would we be without it? Since October 1st is international coffee day, why not treat the coffeeholics on your team to a gift card for their favorite coffee shop! No employee should be without their coffee on this day.
Idea: Another way to bring together the coffee lovers on your team is by creating a dedicated #coffeelovers Slack channel where everyone can share their coffee-making tips and their go-to coffee order.
Idea: Additionally, you could host a coffee tasting event where employees can drop in during their lunch break and have light conversations with co-workers at the office. Since International Coffee Day is on a Saturday this year, you could arrange a cafe-hopping experience across local coffee shops in your city!
Did you know that approximately 10% of the world’s population is vegetarian? On October 1, we celebrate the benefits of being a vegetarian and enjoy perks of the meatless lifestyle.
Idea: Host a vegetarian potluck and have employees sign up to bring their unique dishes to share with the team!
Idea: You could also run a vegetarian cooking class with a professional chef. There is a huge variety of vegetarian dishes to choose from - the world is your oyster! (Not literally, since oysters aren’t vegetarian.)
World Mental Health Day brings awareness to mental health issues around the world and supports those around you. It is important to check in on your employees not just on this day, but throughout the entire year. Happiness and mental wellbeing is closely tied to productivity in the office. The consequences of poor mental health go beyond affecting one’s work, there are serious implications and outcomes that could occur. It never hurts to check in on others and offer a listening ear.
Idea: Use this day (or month) to implement policies, activities, and initiatives that promote and increase the wellbeing of your entire team. Great options include yoga, meditation, music breaks, or fitness classes.
Idea: Additionally, there are many incredible organizations that are dedicated to providing support and resources to those struggling with their mental health. Organize a team fundraiser where donations can be collected for one of these leading organizations.
This day brings awareness to those who are blind or visually impaired and the tools that are necessary to support them. The white cane is an essential tool that allows those who are blind to be able to achieve an independent life.
Idea: The National Federation of the Blind provides resources, educational information, and event ideas for this special day (and throughout the year).
October 16 is the chance to celebrate your boss and all of the work they do for your team. This special day was created to improve the office relationships between employees and their boss, and to appreciate the work that goes into running a team or company!
Idea: A great way to celebrate your boss is by having a team dinner and treating them to a meal or drink to show your appreciation!
Spirit Day is an annual LGBTQ awareness day dedicated to supporting LGBTQ youth by standing up against bullying. Wearing purple on this day is a way to show that you take the pledge and show solidarity with youth. It is the largest LGBTQ anti-bullying campaign in the world.
Idea: GLAAD has so many incredible resources and ways for your team to get involved and go purple on October 21st! Take the pledge, educate your staff and your co-workers, donate to support, and spread the word! Partner with your LGBTQ+ ERG to host a panel on anti-bullying, plan a learning talk and/or create a fundraiser to raise money to support the GLAAD organization.
Diwali, the festival of the lights, is India’s biggest and most important holiday of the year. This festival has increased in popularity outside of India, and is celebrated in communities worldwide such as London, New York, and Toronto.
Idea: Assorted sweets and special treats are a speciality of the occasion of Diwali. Partner with your company’s Asian ERG to provide traditional sweets for your employees. Additionally, you can choose to host a delicious dinner for your team to celebrate love and having fun together.
This day celebrates one of the most important inventions, the internet! This day is celebrated on October 29th as the internet was first achieved on this day in 1969! It’s crazy to think of all the ways the internet has changed the world and our individual lives.
Idea: Create an internet game night (virtual or in-person) to play fan-favorite games like Among Us or Mario Kart. Get the team involved for some fun team building and a little competition.
Spooky season is almost here! There’s Trick or treat your way through the day and dress up in your best costume to get in the Halloween spirit.
Idea: Host a costume contest for your team and award prizes to the winners. The contest can be run virtually by submitting your costume photo in a Slack channel or in-person at the office over lunch! Choose various categories for costumes and gather the prizes for the winners. Plan a Halloween-inspired Happy Hour to announce the winners and have a company-wide social.
Idea: Offer halloween festivities for the whole family! Here are some kid-friendly ideas that can be done virtually or in-person:
With October’s focus on Breast Cancer Awareness, use this month to educate all employees on this topic and empower the women on your team. Offer support groups and accommodations to those on your team who are affected by Breast cancer. Get creative with fundraiser event ideas and have a pink day in the office (virtually or in-person).
Use this month as well to dedicate events and resources to the working parents on your team. Now that school is well underway for their children, it’s a great time to check in and see if there’s any support your team can offer. Especially as a working parent, work-life balance is extremely important. Offer workshops or parenting panels focused on how to achieve a positive work-life balance and manage busy schedules.
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