Remember when you were in elementary school and birthdays were a pretty big deal. You would take a cake or cupcakes or some kind of treat to school that day. Often you got to do something special on your birthday such as lead the Pledge of Allegiance, or take roll or maybe just have your name on the blackboard.

I’m not sure when the idea of birthdays changed in school, maybe high school when you starting changing classes. But somewhere along the line, birthdays began to be celebrated less. Sixteen seemed to be a big one, but that usually called for a party as opposed to something at school.

When I was in college, all of a sudden celebrating birthdays became a big deal again. It was probably a “girl” thing. Even those of us who had summer birthdays celebrated with “half” birthdays. That way no one got missed. And, of course, many of us turned 21 while in college so that was usually a big deal too.

Then when you entered the world of work, things changed. Often times it depends on the kind of business you’re in and your manager. When I was managing a team of Human Resource professionals in a Bank, we always celebrated people’s birthdays at our team meetings. For a while, whoever was celebrating a birthday brought the cake. That worked out really well because they always remembered their birthday and they brought their favorite kind of cake! I’m sure that many business settings don’t acknowledge birthdays. Why not? It’s an opportunity to celebrate.

One of our nieces recently had her first baby. It reminded me that birthdays are about the celebration of life. Being a mother, not only do I believe that the child should celebrate the birthday, but I think mothers (and fathers) also deserve a celebration for bringing that child into the world.

So many people want to ignore their birthdays. And then there are the people like my sister who celebrate for days, sometimes even weeks. The way I see it, having another birthday is better than the alternative!

Here is my challenge to you:

1. Don’t be afraid to let others know it’s your birthday. Let
   your friends and co-workers know. Maybe even consider putting
   up a calendar at work with everyone’s birthday on it.
2. Keep track of your friends and relatives birthdays. Just sending a
   card, making a phone call or acknowledging someone on their
   Birthday brightens their day. If you’re looking for a tool for
   keeping track of birthdays, check out www.BirthdayAlarm.com.
3. Make it a point to celebrate others' birthdays. You may be the
   only one making it happen!

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