How to win in Christmas tilts

Tomorrow, Christmas Day will see a lot of family/clan reunions — complete with programs that will draw out the performer in each one of us. To make these parties more exciting, some will even resort to competitions where prizes will be given out.

I’ve been invited to judge countless corporate parties in the past and those experiences enable me to share tips on how to win in these competitions. The very last one I attended was only last week — at the Slimmers World International grand Christmas party (with Marian Rivera as special guest no less) held at Le Pavilion on Roxas Blvd. Organized by Slimmers World big bosses Ronald Joseph Moy and Helen Camacho, this party was the most fun I attended this season and probably the best one put together by this international fitness center.

Participating in the competition were the different branches and I swear that everyone deserved to win and it pained us judges that there could only be three top prizes (that had always been the rule and we couldn’t break it) because each one was a winner.

Watching the performance of every group, you can derive tips on how to win in future corporate Christmas parties and I’m sharing those with you this time.

 Everything starts with a good concept — Just make sure you stick to the concept and don’t stray because the judges will see that. If you decide to be ambitious and come up with a really grand and huge production, see to it that you’d be able to stand by it to the very end. Panindigan mo — as we say in the vernacular. Otherwise, the whole thing can explode on your face and you’ll be one big, sorry mess.

I remember judging the Christmas party of a huge medical group last year (okay, it’s Belo!) and one branch complained and blamed me for losing (even when I was still judging the Metro Manila Film Festival entries, they were always pointing to me because I’ve always been the high profile one — no thanks to TV). How could they have lost when their concept was the grandest? Sure it was and we saw that in the beginning. But toward the end, they shoved on stage some members of the branch who didn’t know what to do anymore — like they were all lost and out of sync.

As it turned out, they reasoned that one doctor was unable to practice because the wife just gave birth. Well, congratulations for having a bundle of joy, but the prize had to go to the group that stuck to their concept and carried it out till the end.

Practice, practice, practice — Practice truly makes perfect. In the recent Slimmers World Christmas party, the Caloocan branch won because they were the most synchronized and that undeniably was borne out of endless rehearsals. They moved as one — like they were mirrors of each other. They weren’t a big group and since they were moving uniformly, they were easy on the eyes of the judges. Their concept wasn’t grand. In fact, theirs was among the simplest. Since they didn’t have to worry about gimmicks (harnesses, people coming out of boxes, etc.), they were able to concentrate on their steps and were unified till the last bar of the music. In the end, they won second place.

 Show enthusiasm — This became the winning factor for the third place victory of Slimmers Greenhills. Okay, not everyone in the group was spring chicken because some had been in the company for years (and that’s a good sign that they’re happy in their place of work). Some may no longer have the same energy as the young ones, but they showed enthusiasm — that they were going to give their all no matter what. Believe me, the judges appreciated that.

 Give all your energy — This contributed heavily to the first place win of Slimmers North EDSA branch, which had always dubbed as Home of the Champions (they win even in the Slimmers Great Bodies competition). However, that was just one winning factor because their presentation was the most perfect I’ve seen in years of judging contests. For one, it helped that everyone was young and energetic. The enthusiasm was there and definitely they rehearsed to death because I don’t think I ever caught a single misstep. Halfway through their number, we knew that we had a grand winner.

Be historically correct — If your concept is to trace musical history— from Elvis Presley to Lady Gaga, make sure you are accurate. I am very particular with this and was impressed with the production of Slimmers Subic because their music history was chronologically correct. It’s just too bad that there were only three top prizes and they failed to bag one. But I still congratulate them for their number, especially their lead dancer who was so agile and moved like a professional terpsichorean.

Enjoy — Win or lose, just enjoy the number. This is your opportunity to show whatever skill you have and savor it. It’s a Christmas party — so have fun. If all of you enjoy the party as one, you’ll all come out winners.