Gallery Collection Blog

How to Navigate a Business Lunch Without Blowing your Healthy Eating Habits

You’ve been making healthy food choices and feeling great. But the big meeting on Thursday is now going to be over lunch and you need to figure out how to stay on track. Here are some tips on keeping that Business Lunch a healthy one.

If dining out, skip the appetizers and pass on the breadbasket. Choose a simple, protein-based main dish, preferably baked, grilled or steamed (avoid breaded and fried) and ask if you can replace the starchy sides with double vegetables. A few well-chosen requests like ‘dressing on the side’ or ‘light on the sauce’ can painlessly make a big difference calorie-wise. Just try not to overdo the special instructions – if you need to provide lengthy directions to make it healthy it’s probably better to just choose something else.

Some restaurants offer smaller portions at lunchtime, or make the decision to eat only half of the meal and bring the rest home to a family member.

For a catered lunch your best defense will be smart choices and portion control. Opt for reasonable helpings of chicken or fish dishes instead beef or pasta, avoid starchy sides and load up on the veggies (as long as they’re not drowning in sauce). If there’s salad it should take up a generous portion of your plate. Fill your plate once (no going back for seconds) and stay away from the dessert trays.

In all cases, eat slowly – enjoy your food. Take breaks to talk. Not only is it more professional to not be seen wolfing down your lunch (or discussing business around a mouth full of food), but you’ll likely find that you eat less overall. We’re full long before our brain realizes – slow down and allow time for everything to synch up. Start with the healthiest items on your plate and stop when you’ve eaten about 80% of your meal – you might be surprised to soon discover you’re not even hungry for the rest.

It’s easiest to eat healthfully when co-workers are aware and can be supportive, but you may prefer not to draw attention to your personal health goals. ‘Saving room’ casually gets you out of starters and simply saying that you’re full is a nonchalant way to turn down seconds, multiple courses and dessert.

Believe it or not, showing a little restraint with your meal can actually have a positive impact on how your colleagues see you. Smart, sensible choices eaten in moderation allow you to come across as calm, cool and in control, helping more than just your waistline.

Design Your Own Business Cards

Who knows your business better than you? The answer to that is nobody. So why do you go to a website and pick out a design that is premade for the rest of everyone else? Take a little time and make that card the best representation of your company by Designing Your Own Business Card.

All it takes is a little knowledge of Photoshop, Illustrator or Indesign. Grab that graphics person you have around the office and download a template so you can make something magical. Perfectly place your logo and your company colors all over the card. Make sure the font you show is the company approved font.

You control the story because you are writing the narrative. Create something special that all of your company can use. Business cards are an extension of your business and you need to make sure that you personally make them and not just phone it in selecting some predesigned template that other companies can use as well. Stand out from the crowd with a design that is fully immersed in your brand. You will not be just like everyone else in their wallet; you are better than that.

Ways to Customize Your Presentation Folders

A great way to increase your clientele is to send out advertisements promoting your business or services. Stray away from the typical mailings and handouts and go with something bigger and better; presentation folders. Follow these tips on customizing your company presentation folders.

The first thing you want your customers to see when they receive your presentation folder is your company colors. Pick the right color folder, as well as the right imprint color, to match your company colors. The Gallery Collection offers nine different colored folders and sixteen different foil imprint colors.

Next, you definitely want to have your company logo front and centered. You can either have the logo printed large with the company name following beneath it, or have the logo printed a bit smaller to fit the company name next to it. Either way, the name of the company needs to be big, bold and noticeable.

The Gallery Collection offers five different print areas for their presentation folders. If your company has a slogan or catch phrase, you can have that printed at the bottom front of the folder, the bottom back, or on either inside pocket.

Use another imprint area to add your contact information. Your customers are going to need a form of contact once they receive your impressive folders. Include a phone number, an email address, a website and even a contact name.

One last thing to add to your company folder is a business card. Whether it be your own personal business card or a generic company card, insert the card in the folder pocket with the business card slits. This way, if your customers don’t want to carry the folder with them, they can take your business card with them wherever they go.

Retirement Party Ideas For Coworkers

A retirement party is a way to celebrate your coworker’s past accomplishments and also to celebrate what the future will hold for them. Retirement is a big deal. It marks the start of another chapter in your coworker’s life.

Retirement evokes mixed emotions – you are happy for your coworker’s next chapter and then you are a bit sad at the thought of losing your daily time and interactions with this person.

So a memorable transition with the help of a retirement party celebration focusing on your coworker’s career will make their leaving a special event!
Here are some ideas for a retirement party – which could be anything that reflects your coworker’s wishes.

Plan a party

A luncheon – either in the office or out at a restaurant, with all their favorite foods and possibly a roast to them
After work drinks and appetizers
An event focused on their favorite hobby or people in their lives, like their spouses, children or grandchildren.

Prepare

A memory jar – with a collection of all the very best memories of their time on the job
Bucket List jar – to place ideas for the retiree to do with their new found freedom
A retirement card – signed by everyone in the office
A retirement gift – It can be gifts related to travel, or their favorite hobbies or a personalized gift

Whatever you end up preparing your coworker will know how much you care and how much you will miss them. Be sure to keep in touch with them through Facebook or by providing coworkers with their contact information, as one the hardest aspects of retirement is saying good bye to your work family.

11th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Round 9 Finalists Announced!

Congratulations to our Round 9 Finalists!

Entry-6820

Entry-6384

Entry-6147

Entry-6020

Entry-5526

Entry-5503

Entry-5502

Entry-5414

Entry-4823

Entry-4250

Writing for Business Birthday Cards 101

It can be a daunting task to figure out which birthday cards are right for your office. Luckily, The Gallery Collection offers plenty of business appropriate Birthday Cards. Here are some tips to guide you through the process of writing your business birthday cards. Welcome to Business Birthday Cards 101.

When selecting your business birthday cards, be sure to consider both how the cards reflect the business and how your employees will receive your card. Choose a card that suites your business’ appearance by choosing an industry specific card or a card with your company’s colors. Know that various kinds of people will be getting your cards, so choose an all-encompassing design or opt for a Birthday Assortment Box to best tailor to each employee as their own special day approaches.

With The Gallery Collection’s cards, you are able to entirely edit the inside of the card. This can be intimidating to some, but don’t fret. The Gallery Collection offers plenty of classic greetings to choose from. You still have the option to create your own if these do not meet your needs. You could even add your company logo or printed signatures to your cards! This will make your cards look even more professional, not to mention save time for whomever needs to sign them.

Spring Company Outing Ideas

We are quickly approaching my favorite season of the year – spring! Whatever is left of the snow is melting, the sun is staying out longer, and the temperatures are rising slowly but surely. After a couple months of frigid cold, it is no surprise that the majority of people want to take advantage of the spring by going outside as much as they can. Companies usually have an “outing” for their employees at least once a year, and to me, spring is the optimal time to have one of these. Here are three ideas that I think would work well for a potential spring outing.

Minor League Baseball Game – If your company is located in or around a major city, chances are there is at least one “minor league” baseball team around. They aren’t affiliated with any professional team, so the tickets should be very affordable. I have been to a few New Jersey Jackals games, so if you are in the Northern New Jersey area, this would be a fun option to explore. Teams like the Jackals allow companies to purchase group ticket packages, and this is a great idea for a spring outing. Most ballparks contain grass areas near the outfield, so coworkers can bring their kids, and toss a baseball around before the game starts. Being able to sit back as the sun sets, eating some food off the grill and sipping some beer with your family and coworkers after a long day at the office while watching “America’s Pastime” in person (even if it is a minor team) if a very fun experience.

Company Picnic – To continue with the theme of being outdoors, I’d suggest a company picnic as an option for a spring outing. A picnic could be scheduled for either Saturday or Sunday, so work shouldn’t be on anyone’s mind. Who doesn’t like sitting outside and eating? Everyone can bring a food item, almost like a pot luck lunch at the park. Some parks also allow grilling in certain areas, so the company “grill master” can show off his or her chops. Employees can relax by laying on the grass, or compete in some friendly Frisbee or whiffle ball competitions.

Mini Cruise – The spring weather also allows those with boats to take a nice ride out on the water. Another nice way to soak up the rays would be to take an afternoon excursion on a mini cruise. Boat services offer short “cruises to nowhere”, usually for a couple of hours. The boat stays out on the water, passes by different sites, and there isn’t a destination to reach. It allows passengers to feel the nice wavy breeze and relax in the sun. It also allows passengers to have a few drinks as well (almost all of these types of boats have a bar), without the responsibility of steering the boat back to shore. As the case with most group outings, you can take advantage of group discount prices.

Top 3 Bad Work Habits You Need To Overcome

We all want to do our best at work. But even the best intentions are sometimes met with bad habits. Here are 3 bad work habits you need to overcome today!

Being late for work or meetings
Unless your role at the company doesn’t require you to be at your desk and ready to face the day at a set time every day, start times are implemented for a reason. If you know that traffic can be unreasonable, allot yourself some extra commute time in the morning.

Being late for meetings is another bad work habit. If a meeting is set for an hour and you’re five minutes late, you’ve set the hour off and that can bleed into other commitments later in the day. Being on time is a sign that you respect other people’s time – and your own! It also goes a long way towards showing that you’re dependable.

Answering emails as they come in.
You may think that answering emails as soon as you see new ones in your inbox is a good idea. It’s not; in fact, it’s counterproductive. As email’s role in our work lives becomes more and more prominent, the number of messages you receive increases. If you spend all of your time checking your inbox, you’ll find little time for your other responsibilities!

Instead, schedule email processing time into your calendar. Spend some time with your inbox over your morning coffee when you arrive at the office, then schedule an afternoon session after lunch. If an email is informational and doesn’t need further action, move it to a reference folder or delete it. If an email can be responded to at that time, do so. If an email needs a bit more time to respond to, flag it for a future time.

Scheduling in your email time frees up the rest of the day for you to work on projects and tasks without an added distraction.

Not practicing proper hygiene

If you’re guilty of flossing your teeth or clipping your finger (or, please, no, toe) nails at your desk, stop this behavior immediately! Your boss and your coworkers will appreciate your well-groomed hands and your free-from-food mouth a lot more if you take care of that stuff in the privacy of your own home before you get to the office.

These top 3 work habits you need to overcome are just the tip of the iceberg. What other bad habits have you noticed in your office or overcome yourself?

11th Annual Create a Greeting Card Scholarship Contest – Round 8 Finalists Announced!

Congratulations to our Round 8 Finalists!

Entry-3707

Entry-3330

Entry-3285

Entry-3245

Entry-3241

Entry-3126

Entry-3011

Entry-2960

Entry-2734

Entry-2503

Tips On Helping Empower Your Workforce

Having trouble keeping your workforce motivated, autonomous, and with high morale? The following are some quick tips on how to help empower your workforce!

Make expectations clear. When employees are given a standard with which to measure their success, they are more likely to meet or exceed that standard. Creating smaller goals along the way encourages employees to reflect on their own performances and asses if they are meeting these smaller, more attainable milestones.

Keep your employees accountable. When you properly reprimand or appropriately acknowledge poor performance, you are increasing the accountability in your workforce. You want employees to know that substandard work will not be tolerated. This keeps employees from trying to take advantage of the company and helps encourage employees keep each other on task, as there are consequences.

Give them a say. Ask for your employee’s opinions and encourage frequent feedback on every aspect of their day at work. Find ways to improve and resolve any concerns. This will make your employees feel included and will make them more likely to come to you with issues or suggestions in the future. Having an open line of communication with your employees is imperative to achieving higher levels of success.