[smachan]

In our department, the staff member is taken out to lunch at The Keg or Canyon Creek by the person he/she report to. This is the first year that this was done, and everyone was excited on their day.

[Elow]

Trying to put in words how I appreciate my Boss after 12yrs. He's having a 20 year office dinner party.

[Libby Huffman]

Hi Elow,

Wow, 12 years with a boss is a long time and I totally understand how you might be fumbling with the right words. As a writer, I constantly have to battle context. You want to make sure the right message is conveyed. There's one method that has always helped me to get out all the ideas I have in my head into an easily readable format; brainstorming.

Whenever I'm having trouble coming up with content for writing something, I jot down all of my ideas on a piece of paper. Then, I go through and eliminate anything I won't use. This whole process really gets the thoughts flowing and I'm able to pour it all out on paper with little regard for editing. Then, once it's complete, I go back over it with a fine toothed comb.

As far as finding the right words; be sincere. You've been with your boss for a long time and he deserves to hear your appreciation. Try the same technique for finding the right words to express how you feel. Just start jotting down all of the words that come to mind when you think of your boss. Then, try to insert those words into your writing.

I hope this helps. Let us know how the dinner goes. Good luck.

[chris77591]

Our office does birthdays a little different. At the beginning of the year we write down our anniversary date, birth date, etc. on a piece of paper and put in a hat and all year we participate in a secret pal event. On the dates that we had written on the piece of paper - our secret pal does something for that person. The whole office gets to go to lunch that day - but the birthday person gets to pick the place. It's been fun this year. Trying to figure out who has you for a secret pal. Now, at Christmas we will purchase a gift for our person and only at that time can we put our real name on the card to let them know who has been their secret pal all year. If you are a good secret pal and creative you can decorate their desk for every season or holiday to make it more fun!

[BarbyJ]

If it's your birthday, you bring treats!

[bjsmith]

We have 35 employees and the birthday person gets a gift card from the company in the amount of $10 at a local eatery. It is waiting for them on their desk in a card the morning of their birthday. Each year we change the restaurant to keep it fresh. The birthday person usually brings in coffee cake or some treat on their day. We also post the birthdays for the current month in our kitchen. We used to pass cards around for everyone to sign but it seemed like we were continually signing cards. Everyone appeciates the free lunch. Some people decorate offices or cubicles for their close associates when they hit a milestone like 30, 40 or 50 years old.

[Ruth S.]

The President/CEO sends a birthday card to each employee at their home address. In the office suite, we circulate a card and then gather at an appointed time for cake (or the birthday person's favorite "sweet") and to sing Happy Birthday.

[ssheehy23]

I think it's dumb to celebrate birthdays at work as a company policy. I think it's cool if coworkers who know each other give each other cards, and if significant others send flowers, etc. The boss taking people out to breakfast sounds really neat and special, though. But I've nearly always worked in businesses that have lots of employees. It's too much time lost, in my opinion. I always hated it in school when the moms of the other kids would bring cupcakes etc. for their birthdays bc my mom couldn't or wouldn't do that. Maybe bc she was a teacher. As a teacher myself, I find it annoying when students miss school simply bc it's their birthday. I understand about special camps or events but not for your own birthday celebration. That's a private issue. There's always time to reschedule theparty. I think the day itself only matters for little kids...? But compared to the rest of the posts, I feel like a Scrooge! Bah humbug! Maybe it's bc I have never kept track of the student's birthdays. Mabye it's bc I feel like the students who have bdays in the Summer get jipped..esp the late June and late August bc they don't even get a bday during Summer School!

[mford]

We send around a card for everyone in the office to sign for the birthday person. The BD person brings treats. I like the idea of putting everyone's birthday/anniversary dates into a hat and drawing for "secret pals" who are then responsible for gifts/cards when the person's special day arrives.

[MrsHovey]

With my previous employer, we had a daily memo sheet that went out to all employees. If that day happened to be someone's birthday, there would be a notice on the top of the memo. The department head, or a close friend/coworker, would be in charge of getting together a card and some kind of treat for that employee. Everyone loved to celebrate no matter what the reason, and birthdays were always a great time.
Now I work in an new office of 3 (including me!), so I am still trying to figure out the birthday thing. We have our first one coming up next week, so I've been reading through trying to get ideas.