Don’t ruin Valentine’s Day in the office

Whether you’re sick of colleagues giggling about the chocolates their beloved gave them, or you’ve been planning today’s celebration for weeks, there’s no question Valentine’s Day in the office can be somewhat dangerous.

The way people react on Valentine’s Day says a lot about a person. In the office, I have personally experienced both the sensational bragger (“Look at how BIG and expensive these flowers are! My boyfriend loves me so much”) and the sour and grumpy relationship hater – and both are just as bad as each other.

If you want to get through V-day without making your colleagues think you’re a psycho, follow these basic rules.

Don’t rub your relationship in everyone’s face

Granted this is hard to do if your significant other decides to deliver a comically-sized bouquet to your office, but there’s nothing worse than the colleague who brags about how awesome everything is. It’s nice that you’re happy, but avoid spending all day talking about exactly how happy you are. It’s weird.

If you’re giving out things in the office for Valentine’s Day, don’t forget anyone

That feeling of “Oh, no one got me anything” is awful if you’re the only person left empty-handed. Don’t make someone feel bad by not making enough cupcakes for the whole office. It’s just cruel and makes them sad.

“I’m taking a half day today, to celebrate the holiday.”

Yes, someone in a previous office I worked in tried to do this, thinking her reasoning was legitimate. Newsflash: Today is not a real holiday. It never has been, and it never will be.

Don’t go on a Valentine’s Day strike

You might think today is the worst day ever invented by Hallmark but, seriously, don’t bother making a big song and dance about how much you hate it. No one cares, I promise. Plus, your bad attitude is just going to annoy people in general.