I once worked in an office at Christmastime where, without warning or announcement, baked goods started appearing on my desk.

One day there was an individual-sized pound cake resting on my mouse pad. The next day, frosted snowmen cookies sprawled happily on my desk calendar. Fudge, brownies, cookies, holiday coffee mugs filled with M&Ms … the treats kept arriving and I kept shoveling them down. And I never paused to ask why I was the recipient of so much sugary goodness.

Then the treats stopped coming … to my desk anyway.

It turns out that I unwittingly stumbled upon an office holiday gift giving tradition. When I failed to reciprocate, I was blacklisted.

But in the cold, achy light of severe sugar withdrawal, I realized I just learned a valuable lesson. Every office has a holiday gift giving tradition and it's best to find out what yours is … sooner rather than later.

Unless you work for a corporate giant whose employee handbook forbids joy and holiday cheer of any sort, it's likely that your office celebrates the holidays with some sort of gift giving. Whether it's Secret Santa, a Yankee Swap (also called a Chinese gift exchange), adopting a family through a charity or simply a week-long buffet of baked goods, gift giving is a fantastic way to celebrate the holiday with the people you see for 40-plus hours a week.

It can also be difficult and, at times, a little stressful. What's appropriate to buy; how much do you spend spend; do you buy for everyone, just one person or your individual department? These are just a few of the questions that come up at offices this time of year.

We're here to help. Whether you're organizing an office gift exchange or just trying to navigate the politics of your office's tradition, here are a few tips to help you get through the headache of holiday gift giving at work.

Find out what the tradition is
Even if the tradition is no gifts, you can be sure that your office has a holiday gift giving policy. It's been my experience that most of these policies and traditions are unwritten and maintained and upheld in the mind of the office manager. If you're unsure about your office traditions, you can ask a co-worker. But if you want the real skinny, then go straight to the office manger.

Get the specifics
If people bring in food, do they bring it in on a certain week or day? Is it a holiday treat or a pot luck lunch? If there's a gift exchange, should it be a gag gift, a unisex gift? Be sure to get the whole scoop. You don't want to be person who gives a whoopee cushion only to receive a hand-knit scarf. And, most importantly, find out your workplace's policy on gift giving to the boss. At some companies, everyone chips in. At others, the boss participates equally in Secret Santa or a Yankee Swap. Be sure to find out before you go solo on a boss's gift, though. At many places, "gifting up" is frowned upon and seen as sucking up.

Play fair
Without fail, in every gift exchange there's always one spoil-sport. There's the Secret Santa who thinks "gag gift" means X-rated toy … even if the recipient is a soft-spoken grandmother who spends her weekends teaching Sunday school. Or the Yankee Swap participant who plots and strategies her way into the gift she wants. This year, my friend's workplace rewrote its holiday gift policy because one greedy swapper refused to play by the rules and give up her gift last year.

Personal gifts should be exchanged privately
You and the marketing manager may be best friends who meet for drinks after work and go shopping on the weekends. That's great. But keep the private gift giving out of the office. It's just like your third grade teacher always said. If you didn't bring enough to share with the class then put it away for later.

Make it voluntary, but invite everyone to participate
Some people just don't want to participate in office gift giving. Whether its financial constraints, religious/political beliefs or just a little Bah Humbug spirit, it doesn't mean they shouldn't be asked. And "holiday" is the operative part of the holiday gift exchange, so don't exclude co-workers based on their faith, let those who don't celebrate Christmas choose whether or not they'd like to participate.

Price limits
Inviting everyone to participate in an office gift exchange means that you've included the CEO, the receptionist, the part-time intern and even the janitor (if it's someone you see frequently). Setting a reasonable price limit is a great way to ensure that everyone who wants to participate is able. I once worked in an office that asked everyone on the staff to fork over $50 for an adopted family. A comfortable sum for the president of the company, perhaps, but the receptionist who struggled to make ends meet could barely do half that sum. I think $10 is a reasonable and comfortable limit. Many offices do $20, but if you're including the often under-paid support staff, $20 could still be a stretch.

Hey Richmond! What goes on in your office during the holidays? Let us know by leaving a comment below. All you need is your name, a comment and the answer to 2+2.