THE RULES OF SECRET SANTA. While everyone seems to have some of their own rules when it comes to Secret Santa, the idea can be traced back to the Scandinavian tradition of knocking on someone’s door, throwing a present inside when it opens, then running away. There is a classic episode of The Office where Michael Scott (played by Steve Carell) got someone an iPod as a Secret Santa gift, even though the limit for gifts was set at $20. Skip the secret Santa game and do something else. 1.
Everyone involved has got to be happy with the budget, so agree on it before drawing names from a hat. Alert and enthuse your fellow office champions that you're running the office Secret Santa this year and if they want in they need to sign up. It might be a little intimidating to host a secret Santa where the players don't know each other well, but it's not impossible! You want to do everything you can to keep that a secret until the day when your group is revealing who the Santas are. Second hand: each participant gives an unwanted gift they need to recycle. 4. There is no office Secret Santa Always stick to the price limit.
There are ways to make sure that all the players leave happy. Secret Santa shouldn’t be expensive; it tends to a budget of between £5 and £20. As much as you may think that getting an expensive gift will win you friends (well, one friend), in reality it’s never that simple. “It’s not about the gift and whether you like it, it’s about the activity itself,” says Oldham.

Funny secret Santa rules: the funnier the better in some offices! Now you’ve picked a name, and someone in the group has also picked your name. Nope! For the purposes of explanation we'll use the example of an office secret santa, but the basic Secret Santa rules apply whomever is involved. Remember, the Secret Santa is supposed to be a light-hearted, fun activity. Tip #1: Follow the Rules. What could be the best themes for secret Santa this season? Homemade: any produce at all as long as its homemade such as Art, food, jumpers, clothes, jewellery, photography all counts! 3. Secret Santa Rules. No good ever came from an office where one person gets a £50 gift while everyone else’s only cost £10. The number one rule for doing a Sneaky Santa is to have fun, and a huge part of the fun is the suspense surrounding just who might have your name! 2. Agree on a budget – and stick to it The aim of the game is that everyone receives a gift of a similar value to the one they bought. Then, when he was given an oven mitt by his Secret Santa, he flipped out that no one cared as much as he did, even though the other office members all followed the $20 rule.