Dear Bob ...I want to comment on the "Celebration of Birthdays." I too am in the camp that does not want my birthday advertised (and thus celebrated) in a public manner, not because I am a Jehovah's Witness (I am not really sure what one is anyway) but because this is a piece of information that is used to identify me. With identity theft a big problem now days, I try to keep as much information about myse Dear Bob …I want to comment on the “Celebration of Birthdays.” I too am in the camp that does not want my birthday advertised (and thus celebrated) in a public manner, not because I am a Jehovah’s Witness (I am not really sure what one is anyway) but because this is a piece of information that is used to identify me. With identity theft a big problem now days, I try to keep as much information about myself private and confidential. I also believe that HIPPA may also require that this information remain confidential in certain circumstances.I think that the person instigating the whole thing about “Celebration of Birthdays” should also be taken to task. Some of us prefer to celebrate our birthday with family and friends and those people are not necessarily our coworkers. Confidentially yours,AnonymousDear Anonymous … I understand your point. I’m no longer sure about celebrating my birthday either – not because of concerns over identity theft but because I don’t find getting one year closer to death to be anything I want to celebrate. Mostly, denial seems like a great approach.I don’t agree with you about taking the instigators to task. Whether or not it’s a great idea, scalable, sustainable or anything else, it’s done with the best of intentions – a way of saying, “We’re happy you were born, and also are delighted you’re giving us an excuse to not work for fifteen minutes or so.”In the average workplace, both seem like worthwhile sentiments. And I’m not entirely kidding: Groups need to maintain trust – otherwise they lose their ability to function. The celebration of birthdays can be a way to help achieve that (although as with anything else it can get out of hand). Of course, it can get out of hand, and managers need to keep a wary eye on anything that can slip down the slope from spontaneity to entitlement. Your not wanting to celebrate your birthday is a perfectly valid preference, although I hope you’d be gracious if it happened in spite of your wishes. Imagine it goes the other way, though: Birthday celebrations become a common occurrance, and then someone who already lacks self-confidence is inadvertently overlooked. Wham! The major hurt feelings do more damage than any morale boost caused by all the birthday celebrations that did occur.Then there’s the ever-popular mandatory contribution. It’s never really mandatory, but in some offices they might as well be. When peer pressure to contribute is high, the notion that it’s the thought that counts is pretty much gone.Birthday celebrations are one of THOSE issues. You can’t ignore it, banning it by policy makes you a petty bureaucrat, yet it can cause real problems in office harmony if it goes off track. It illustrates why quite a bit of management is muddling through.– Bob Technology Industry