A recent article on CNN.com gave some helpful suggestions on how to squash workplace wars. Sure, handling interoffice disputes is easier said than done, but in my experience, I tend to get more annoyed than engage in full-blown arguments that need a mediator. Since we all spend more time with our co-workers than our loved ones, it's no wonder friction arises from time to time. We are all adults here, and it's no one's responsibility but our own to keep the peace at work, so do tell ladies, how do you handle office fights or annoyances?
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Do Tell: What Annoys You Most at Work?
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Id say dont even get me started...but you just did, so:
I work in a "team" envirnoment which obviously involves clear communication between teammates, and it really bothers me when people dont understand that. (ie, not leaving notes in cases that they have worked on, not answering IMs..etc)
I work in correlation with law enforcement, and I hate it when they make you feel stupid for not giving them the answer they want to hear. Or when they try to get information out of you without the appropriate legal demands. (they try to be very sneaky about it sometimes too) Or when they just ask you the same question over and over again, just worded differently, hoping to trip you up.
Those are my two biggest complaints, but there are more.
1When people come to work sick and it sounds like a waiting room at the doctors office!!!
2I work at a doctor's office and I HATE when patients constantly call me! Call me once and leave me a message and I will get back to you as soon as I can!
And I have tons more but I'll stop there.
3When coworkers think their requests should be top priority, it's "first come, first serve". And they're not FIRST so just wait.
4agreed ashcwebb....people coming to work when they're sick. not cool.
5I third that. What the heck are you doing at work!?
It doesn't mean you are a hard
worker, it means you have really poor judgment.
6Here is my list:
* I hate it when there is an important task set up, and its been divided up so not one person has to do too much, and there is always one individual who happens to be sick,,,everytime,,,so you have to pick up the slack.
* when my coworkers bring thier kids to work because of school getting out early, lack of babysitters, etc and the kid trashes our break room, or the mom is just too distracted to be useful.
* people who wear christmas sweaters all year long...and we live in florida
* The hallway talkers, you know the ones who come into work and TALK for freaking ever in the hallway about what they made for dinner last night to the latest news on thier grandkids school situation, get in your office and work!!!!AND dont you ever dare say anything to me about time management.
7"* people who wear christmas sweaters all year long...and we live in florida"
"The hallway talkers, you know the ones who come into work and TALK for freaking ever in the hallway about what they made for dinner last night to the latest news on thier grandkids school situation, get in your office and work!!!!AND dont you ever dare say anything to me about time management."
Oh man, that is sooo annoying..pretty much everyone I work with does this. its like...you are supposed to start working at 7. That doesnt mean get here at 7, put your stuff down and then go over and sit in someone elses cube for 30 minutes.
And the people who have no sense of decency. You know, the girls who sit there and complain about their baby daddy, or talk about what a sweet party they went to this weekend....there is a time and a place for everything, at work, you should not be blabbing your personal life.
8I could go on and on with this topic, but most of all, I don't like when co-worker don't know when they are crossing a line, like the people who seem to be deliberately hurtful and mean to others in front of everyone. We have a woman here, that does that CONSTANTLY all day long. It never stops. Every time she opens her mouth it's something rude.
I also don't like people who are know-it-alls and EVERY time you say something they've done that, have that or know some crappy story about that.
9People who waste time then want to rush at the last minute to complete a task. That is why the sign on my cubie says "A lack of preparation on your part doesn't constitute an emergency on my part". I love that poster.
10love that quote jessy
11People who talk to me while I'm going potty.
I have a shy bladder, and I cant concentrate if you're trying to have a conversation with me while I'm trying to tinkle!!!!
12you guys know i hate stupid people.
people really don't like to get in an arguement with me, though.
i come off as quiet, but when things get stired up, I usually know what i'm talking about, (and with the pretty-girl syndrome talked about in the other post), they expect me to just back down and reapply lip gloss. but i hold my own, and i know my job. so people don't bother me much.
but i DO reapply my lip gloss after a tiff. gotta always look good in the fashion world.
13i hate the hallway talkers. i work with a few of those. i just want to get to my desk and start working. i am here to work not chat with you about your kids damn it! i'm getting annoyed just thinking about it. i also hate the people who leave things to the last minute. when i get a dictation or a full scap of instructions for a file and the date is from like a week ago and they hand it to you and say i need this by the end of the day or first thing tomorrow morning - oh i could wring their neck! why did you not hand this to me as soon as you got it?!?! ugh.
14i hate Organic-B*tch (that's my nickname for her) at work.
she's very very calm and laid back. and i don't like people like that. it's like they have old batteries running them, and i go a million miles a minute anyways.
but if i bring food to work (mind you, i'm a piggy, and i snack ALLL day) she'll come in my office and be like,
"oh. Rice Crispie Treats are garbage. do you know what they make these out of!?!"
and my reply is, "Yeeessss. Sugar, cow fat, sugar, and oh, the rice crispies."
she always looks like she's gonna pass out.
it's like, "B*tch, i didn't ask you!why are you even in my f*ckin' office?!"
but i don't do that to people at work.
if we go out as a group to lunch, she'll pitch a big fit about not knowing what's in the food. ok, fine. but why didn't you suggest another restaurant when everyone was putting their 2 cents in???! HMMMM????!!!!
and the other day, the housekeeping lady's (Myra- LOVE her. she's my second mom!) son had a birthday, and she was bringing me a piece of cake. (anyone who knows me knows i LOVE birthday cake). so she brought it and i put it in the break room with a post-it with me name and a funny note about losing an eye if they eat my cake.
so when i was getting ready to leav for the day, i go in the break room, and i see Organic-B*tch picking up my cake and proceeding to throw it away!
i asked her what she was doing and htat was my cake.
she had the nerve to say,
"well it's full of sugars and fats. that's not healthy for you."
i snatched the cake from her hands, and told her,
"i wasn't aware that i was on your insurance plan. but nevertheless, it is NONE of your business what i eat. NOR is it your place to go throwing people's food away. AND i an quiet happy clogging my arteries and i would like to left alone to do so! so please don't touch my food!"
she then said as i was leaving,
"you are so closedminded to when people want to help you live right."
i came back in and i said,
"you're right." and i opened the Mason jar with the sugar and took a spoonful of sugar, and said "i need help. . .BAD"
she litterally squeeked!
it took everything for me not to laugh until i got to my car.
she got lucky we were at work. don't fux wit my cake!
15-People that wait until the last second to do something and then whine about not having enough time
16-People that argue a point that have no clue what they are talking about
-People that complain about something everytime they walk through the door
-People that think their time is more valuable than everyone else
-And finally (and this one will more than likely make some people mad) People that drop everything at work for something having to do with their kids when its NOT SOMETHING IMPORTANT. Ex: I can't come to the meeting because its spring break and little Johnny is home all week and I want to spend time with him.
I hate people that take credit for your work. All we have is our work product, so if someone takes your work and passes it off as their own, it's so bullsh*t. I am not asking for someone to always say who did what piece of work, but I don't expect them to take credit for everything.
That's when I draw the line and my fangs come out.
17Sorry, I forgot one. Bad phone manners.
18Ooo I just thought of another one!
I hate it when I'm in the middle of a project involving using the copier, and someone comes into the copy room and goes "Oh, should I come back?"
No. You should interupt me and make me move out of the way because obviously whatever the hell you're trying to get done today is way more important than what I'm working on!
Hello? We all share that stupid piece of sh*t copy machine and we all need to get our work done so we can go home at the end of the day.
Wait your flippin turn!
191. when people have an emergency and use email as the only form of communication
2. when the boss forgets to assign me something and i have to scramble at the last minute.
3. and the worst thing about work: HR!!!!!!!! they are only there to screw the little guy.
20j2e1-that reminds me--I hate it when people use the printer to print out hundreds of pages of records...burn them to a CD, people!
21* The Food Police (the organic B*tch story reminded me of it, by the way that was awesomely funny) I am a thin girl, 5'3 125 pounds give or take, I have a history of eating disorders, but have now through therapy and building habits come to a place where I can actually enjoy my food. I bring lunch everyday, because ordering out is "dangerous" for me. I bring healthy stuff, lots of snacks (cause i am a grazer) and I always get comments like "how do you stay so skinny" when clearly i have an apple in my hand and they just ate an entire take out box of chinese food. They also try to sabotage me (not knowing my past history) by sneaking , or as i call it "food sniping" things into my office like cupcakes, or candy bars, as if out of the clear air they appeared, God wanted me to have it. I always toss them in the hallway trash can very loudly.
22Okay, something that annoys me a bit at work goes something like Asia. This girl is on a diet and I guess she thinks everyone else is because everytime I eat something unhealthy she tells me that I shouldn't be eating it!! THAT PISSES ME OFF!! If I'd be watching my weight, I wouldn't care but I'm not and I don't expect to start anytime soon since I weight about 105 lbs...ugh
Also, I hate it when how some individuals cannot stop being upset at everything and anything. There's a girl here who basically cusses the copier out...she ALWAYS has something to complain about and that's irritating.
23Thank you CaterpillarGirl! I am also very tiny, 5"2' and 105. I eat healthy and exercise and I did suffer from a eating disorder in my past but have been doing fine for 3 years now!
I am so sick of all the women in my office saying...."OMG, you are sooooo thin", or "I wish I
could feed you a big juicy hamburger", or "you should switch those carrots with some fries." I don't know if it's just jealousy or what but stop it!!!!!!!! I don't eat when I'm not hungry and
if I want a cookie I will eat a cookie but stop trying to patrol my food and making smart a** comments! Ok, end of rant 
24Ok. I need some advice! A new guy just started in my office and he has almost every annoying attribute that's listed above. He's only been here a month and he's already delegating work that he doesn't like when he doesn't even have that much on his plate, he says rude comments and justifies them by saying that "he's just kidding, and he is obnoxiously confidant for no reason. He is putting me in a bad mood at work which is where I spend 50 hours a week. Every time he says my name..I cringe. What should I do?
25Ericased, if that happened to me I would start throwing dirty dishes at him. Since you can't do that, ignore him. When he gives you a task, put it on your list of things that need to be done last.
26I work in a male dominated field and I despise when people call me on the phone and are like "Oh ur a girl?" YES WOMEN CAN BE ENGINEERS TOO!!!!!! Besides the fact that my name could be either a girls name or a guys name when spoken, but when in writing it is clearly the girl spelling...I will email them and they will respond with that is an interesting spelling of your name, typically that is reserved for women. YES, I know that and so did my parents, that is why when they had a DAUGHTER, they chose the FEMALE spelling...What the f*ck is wrong with some folks....have you never seen a female engineer ever???? Geez I needed to get that off my chest...
27People who do not pull their weight.
281) Office gossip - I have no patience for when people discuss other people behind their back (in or out of the office).
292) People who don't embrace technology and therefore take too long completing projects (ie. putting post-its on my desk instead of sending me an email - they've wasted time walking to my desk and I can't file the post-it according to project in my electronic files). I really feel that aside from storing contracts, there is no reason for a filing cabinet, typewriter, whiteout, etc. to exist in offices these days.
I would like to add chronic whiners (it's already been touched upon). Everyone else is busy working and raising children and dealing with other issues outside of work! Constantly going on about how "stressed" you are and how you never have "free time " doesn't make others feel sorry for you it just makes your look whiney!
30Also, I work in a dentist office and people that have appointments and bring small children, even infants, along with nobody to watch them is beyond annoying! We are not babY sitters . I realize sometimes you get caught short, but you need to reschedule your apointment!
Kristinh1012: I soooo agree with you. I defintely hate when coworkers are "know it alls". I work in a bakery, and mostly women work there. There is this one girl there that always tries to show you up. But we (and the boss most importantly) see through it. Some of the women have so much drama that they drag other coworkers into it. A lot of the coworkers can be catty, and of course, not a day goes by when there isn't some kind of drama going on.
My pet peeve would be the teeny boppers that work in the afternoons. I'm an assistant manager, and I always close with 3 teenage boys. OMG they drive me crazy. I know that they are young with no responsiblity, but work is NOT the place to be texting your friends, and dodge your work responsibilities. I don't remember EVER pulling that crap when I was young.
Now complaining about customers: I wont go into detail, but PEOPLE...when you order a cake, it's totally ridiculous to order some far fetched cake so you can impress your family or high class friends. STOP IT. It's just a cake, it will be good!
Another peeve is when they ask if the icing is sweet. Umm, yeah.
31i can go on and on, but top of my list is colleagues who talk down to me. i decide the next time anyone does that to me, i will just say if you can't talk nicely to me in a professional manner, then don't. and then i shall walk away.
32Another peeve is when they ask if the icing is sweet. Umm, yeah
haha..that reminds me of bill engvals "heres your sign"
33CitizenKane............are you serious??????? People who take time to spend with their kids is NOT IMPORTANT. You just pissed me off SO badly. I hope you don't have kids. AND NO I do NOT just take off work whenever I want I rarely EVER get to take off, AND I rarely ever get to spend quality time with my kids. SO the fact that there are people like YOU that would think it wasn't important if I did have that luxury makes me sick.
Obviously your parents didn't do much to teach you about what raising a child is all about. And if they did, they forgot a huge part.
34I'm in the same boat with you Ericased... the new guy in our office is rude,arrogant and stupid. He irrates me sooooooooooooo much!! i mean seriously...he is annoying as hell!!!! i just ignore him and when he asks me something i always answer him ''maybe'' no matter what he asks!!! the other day i bought lunch and he comes over and opens up my bag to see what i bought...i was so mad i almost told him to eef off!! i told him he's very rude so know we don't talk to each other and that's a good thing
oh and whenever i'm busy on my computer and he walks by he always hovers over me trying to
see what i'm doing!! agh!!!
35Sorry but I am with Citizen Kane on this one, I am so tired of putting in more effort and time for the same pay, because they made the mistake of having children and little Suzy has a soccer game today, so they just CAN'T stay late and help.
It is just presumed that because I am single and child free that I have no life...I have a life outside of my job, but I have to put things off to stay late at work sometimes....NEWSFLASH - IT IS PART OF THE JOB.
If you don't like it, either make the choice to not have children (I have) or figure out a way to work at home. But DO NOT b*tch when I demand that you work the same hours for the same pay that I do...you had kids not me, and I refuse to suffer because of your poor choices.
36atablack-I know how you feel (about your first comment) My title is "electronic surveillance technician" and anytime I tell someone that they seem suprised that a woman could possibly have enough brains to be a technician. Not only that but I get the "but you are soo young" all the time too.
37Our payroll person is a chronic clock-watcher and I don't just mean she's anxious to go home. She watches how long people take lunches and if they punched out or not. No one's schedule here effects her work or would interfere with her schedule at all. It's obnoxious. The only people that should be worried about it is our supervisors. If it doesn't effect you then it's not your business. And if you have such little work to do that you can go lurking around the office to see who's taking a break then I can surely give you some of mine. We have a "whiner" too, she's constantly complaining about something. We have told her that her new name is Eyore because that's exactly who she sounds like. "Poor Me". Oh and what the F, I had someone the other day as they were walking out the door to the restroom that they had a horrible case of hemmroids??!! Just because I sit at the front desk on your way out to the restroom doesn't mean I need or want to know your business...eww!
38Let's just touch on the iceberg of my office peeves.
I work in a call center for a wireless phone company. I talk to the public all day, and as a supervisor, I talk to the angriest of angry. I have become accustomed to the screaming but the one thing I DESPISE is pleading ignorance. "I didn't KNOW text messaging would run up my bill!" doesn't mean you don't have to pay it. Where is the responsibilities for our own actions people?
As far as coworkers go, I could type forever. I have a corporate psychopath boss who doesn't care whose toes she steps on as long as it gets her ahead. I have a subordinate who is bipolar and insists on divulging every excruciating detail of his illness. He even told me the other day that he thought his meds weren't working anymore and was about to go over the edge. Geez. Please keep some things to yourself.
And PLEASE don't surf MySpace for 2 hours then complain that you need extra time to complete your tasks because you're so "swamped."
39This doesn't happen at my current job, but at my old one, I would constantly have to work an extra shift (over another supervisor) because I don't have a child, and they do. Just because I don't have a toddler screaming at home doesn't mean I should have to work 18 hour shifts.
40I work for animal control/humane society to give you some background...
Co-workers:
-People who see a stack of work on my desk and ask if I'm busy. -duh-
-When I am busy and ask my currently chatting co-worker to help a customer and they ask if I'm busy.
-People who are sick every other week for several days at a time
-Having to be secretary for people who just don't feel like taking calls
-People who are so busy doing extra-curricular activities to do their normal every day work
-Having to constantly respond to the call "I've left 5 messages over the last 5 weeks for [insert department here] and no one has called me back"
Customers:
-People who insist that dead animals in a field are an emergency
-People who don't understand why our trucks can't make it the 15 miles to their house in the 30 seconds that I have them on the phone
-People who surrender the box of kittens/puppies "someone left on their doorstep" that are totally clean and just happen to be the same color as the cat/dog they own that's not fixed and is frequently reported running loose.
-Idiots who surrender the "stray dog/cat they found" that has a microchip that is registered to them.
That's all I can think of right now. Ha. Don't get me wrong, I love my job.
41How no one in my office talks. Its like there is some unwritten rule that we must sit here in silence all day. Especially when the President is in his office all day.
42Sorry in advance for the long rant-the question just really touched a nerve.
My biggest pet peeve at work & at school (more specifically in study rooms in the library of the law school I attended) is how unbelievably inconsiderate some people can be. I'm referring to people who seem to be oblivious to the fact that they are not the only person in the room/area & talk inexplicably loud about personal matters on the phone or, as mentioned above, in the hallway (esp when it is right next to another person's desk or office, have a radio on their desk that they play at a volume My desk at work is in a cubicle & I'm surrounded by 4 other people (also in cubies)-3 of them are great people to work around(that sounds weird, but I don't work with them-we each work in completely unrelated departments & just got stuck here b/c it was what was available). One guy-who is, thankfully, only here for 3-4 days a week is unbelievable, he's very loud in general (you can hear him coming down the hall b/c he has an enormous key ring filled w/ keys that he latches onto a belt look that jangles w/ every step; he constantly makes calls using speaker phone & they pretty much always involve either personal or very sensitive business matters that are no one else's business, turns his radio on just loud enough to where it's difficult to really concentrate at times AND sings along; he is constantly talking to himself, etc.... I don't know the guy, not sure who is supervisor is, only that his division/dept is not in the same bldg. I've been told that others have made him aware on several occasions that his actions are disturbing others & he'll be better for a day then go right back to how he was. I'm also so unconfrontational it's ridiculous, so the thought of saying something to this guy makes me uncomfortable. For this reason, I have learned to tolerate (or as my best friend likes to say "suffer in silence") inconsiderate people, rather than directly confront them & am just counting my blessings that this particular jackass is not here 7 days a week-which really helps dealing w/ him easier.
I get really annoyed at people who act in a similar way in a college library, particularly during exam times. This is especially bad in law libraries (for those of you who haven't experienced the hell that is law school or know anyone who has, we are incredibly anal people...if we weren't that way going in (I wasn't), we are by the time we graduate). In law school you have ONE 3-4 hour exam (usually made up of long essays) for each class-that's it, no other tests, quizzes, papers, extra credit, etc... go into the grade you receive, it all comes down to that one f*@king test over an enormous amount of intricately detailed material & it's humanly impossible to master in the time you have to learn it. Not only that, but you have 4-6 of these exams w/in the course of 2 weeks (sometimes, if you're lucky (that's sarcasm there), you have multiple exams back-to-back (I once had 3 in 2 days & couldn't do a damn thing about it). My point is, we get to be incredibly uptight when it comes time to study, esp since most of us are very good procrastinators & sometimes first crack open the book when we start studying for the exam. As a result, most libraries designate "ultra quiet" areas or floors where no talking is allowed. There are tons of jackasses (this is law school after all) that get in one of the few study rooms & proceed to talk loudly on their cell phone, or with a study-buddy & b/c they're in a tiny room w/ a small door that shares walls w/ at least 3 other rooms, their voices reverberate like you wouldn't believe, so much so that using earplugs to block it out is futile. Happens every exam period, complaining doesn't help b/c they don't give a sh#t about anyone around them & just start up again. Thankfully, I don't have to deal w/ that anymore, but for 2 x a year for 3 years I did & am impressed that I made it through w/o beating the s*it out of or killing a fellow student. ;D
Thanks for letting me rant, I feel much better now.
43I absolutely cannot stand it when co-workers go on and on and on about their family.
44I honestly do not care about them, let alone their family members. I'm at work to work, not to catch up on what you're grandkids/kids are up to these days.
Another thing that *really* gets under my skin is when I'm off for vacation or a personal day, co-workers will grill me on what I did with my free time. If I wanted them to know, I would have told them.
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