I’m in a management position in a very traditional, tight-knit company. During holiday time, my office floats on a sea of baked goods of every description. In a nutshell, there are sweets and treats everywhere … all the time.

I don’t have a sweet tooth, and I try to avoid between-meal snacks. This is not a moral or even dietary position. I just don’t have a taste for the stuff, and my waistline can’t afford them.

But every sweet treat is presented with the inevitable, “You’ve got to try them!” “So good!” And the last thing I need to be doing is stoking resentment among my very talented associates because I won’t eat their delightful offerings.

So I’ve taken to complimenting the chefs on how great their baked goods smell, look … and taste — even when I haven’t eaten them. How much violence am I doing to the Eighth Commandment?

— The Boss