(Our November print issue includes a feature story detailing “10 Steps to Last-Minute Holiday Success.” Today we bring you an excerpt explaining one of those steps: making work fun. Also check out yesterday’s excerpt on creating useful displays.)

One key to a successful holiday season for jewelers is making work fun.

Consultant Andrea Hill says it’s natural to feel stressed during a season that for many in the jewelry business is crucial. But when owners and staff are stressed, customers can feel it, too. “If your store is a calm oasis of happy campers tending to the needs of customers, you’ll have much greater success.”

One way to inject a little mirth into your operations this quarter is to offer staff incentives for the highest average retail sale or the most add-ons, says Darci Aslage, business mentor for the Edge Retail Academy.

“We created a bingo game, and if they complete the bingo squares, they win a prize,” she says.

Or put gift cards or cash in a lot of different envelopes, and when you catch an employee doing something right, let them pick an envelope out of a Santa bag and win a prize — a $10 gift card to a local business or $50 in cash.

Britten Wolf, owner of BVW Jewelers in Reno, NV, says he takes in so many unusual repair items during the holidays — everything from candle holders and ornaments to shoes — that he offers the staff member who predicts the year’s oddest repair item a gift from Santa.

Also remember to be clear about what you’re trying to achieve as a team. Offer praise every time you see praiseworthy behaviors, be available to step in and help and be a calming, emotionally mature presence in the store. And if this isn’t you, then find a manager who is these things and step out of the way.