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How do you deal with the "chatty cathy's" at work who go around and bother everyone around them? I come to work to get work done since I always have a lot on my plate. I don't want to have to spend extra time there because I had to have a 30 minute small talk with someone in the office. I like to keep to myself and not socialize with other coworkers for the most part. I know that is viewed as snobbish or weird, but that is honestly how I feel. I have nothing against them. I would rather have my work and social life separated. How do you gracefully get these people to leave you alone? Especially when one of them is your own supervisor (doesn't he have work to do? )
I must admit that the moment I hear them coming, I put the phone up to my ear so that they can see. That way, they think I am on the phone and won't disturb me. If someone hovers and waits (which really, really bugs me) I mouth that I will get back to them as soon as I get off the phone. If I am walking around and run into someone who is chatty, I just make an excuse like I am swamped and need to get back to what I am doing. I had to develop this skill the moment people found out I was pregnant. Everyone offers advice, the whole how are you feeling skit, when are you due, how are you going to raise your kid, etc. questions get old!
Don't agree with them. I'm serious when I want to be left alone I tell them how it is. Or they do it to me. Since I am chatty. Sometimes chatty people are fishing for answers to their own problems.
Wow, maybe it's a Chicago thing... Since coming here, I have noticed a complete 180 degree difference in the attitude of the workforce. Tons of time spent socializing and making small talk, all while putting work on the back burner... This kind of stuff would have never flied at my previous jobs. It was strange at first, and I always felt the need to look over my shoulder when talking, but I noticed none of the other employees seemed to care when the bosses were walking around.
None the less, I am a pretty work focused guy, and don't like to see the work pile up. That just adds to the stress of the day, which I also don't like to build up. Sometimes I strategically try to end the conversation, but other times, I'll just look at the clock and walk off. If I hurt feelings, so be it. I'm not paid to be anyone's friend.
Oh, for heaven's sake. I'm glad I don't work with any of you.
Relax, chatting is part of the office environment. You never know what may come of being pleasantly sociable to your co-workers, and work does not happen in a vacuum. Postponing your work for five minutes while you interact with a human being will not signal the End Times.
If you have work to do and you're stopped to chat, it won't kill you to be friendly for a few minutes, and then politely excuse yourself.
Don't be so uptight! You'll be much happier for it. Who knows, you might even make a friend or two.
Postponing your work for five minutes while you interact with a human being will not signal the End Times.
Postponing your work for five minutes to accomodate the desire of 12 different co-workers who want to chat means you are missing an hour of work a day. If you can still get your work done, then someone is eventually going to notice and increase your workload. If you can't get your work done then you are staying late and missing out on your life outside of work. So I fail to see the upside.
I don't mind when someone asks a personal question or relates a personal experience in passing during the course of the day, or a few minutes first thing in the morning while I am settling in or late in the day when I'm wrapping things up, but when I'm at my desk working furiously to make a dent in the ever-growing pile in my "in" basket I'm in no mood to have somebody to come in and start telling me about the camper he has for sale or the quilting bee she's going to this weekend.
I've found that blatantly ignoring them works the best. Acknowledge them with a polite "hello" when they walk up, but other than that just keep doing what you're doing and don't react to what they're saying in any way.
Oh, for heaven's sake. I'm glad I don't work with any of you.
Relax, chatting is part of the office environment. You never know what may come of being pleasantly sociable to your co-workers, and work does not happen in a vacuum. Postponing your work for five minutes while you interact with a human being will not signal the End Times.
If you have work to do and you're stopped to chat, it won't kill you to be friendly for a few minutes, and then politely excuse yourself.
Don't be so uptight! You'll be much happier for it. Who knows, you might even make a friend or two.
I agree with you, but I don't think our bosses would though.
Oh, for heaven's sake. I'm glad I don't work with any of you.
Relax, chatting is part of the office environment. You never know what may come of being pleasantly sociable to your co-workers, and work does not happen in a vacuum. Postponing your work for five minutes while you interact with a human being will not signal the End Times.
If you have work to do and you're stopped to chat, it won't kill you to be friendly for a few minutes, and then politely excuse yourself.
Don't be so uptight! You'll be much happier for it. Who knows, you might even make a friend or two.
No one gets paid to talk. You get paid to work. None of us are talking about the five minutes of casual quick conversation...we are talking about those crazies that have to waste 30 minutes of valuable time with talking about things unrelated to work or prying into our lives because they are so nosy. I like getting work done. If that makes me a horrible person for not chatting about everything under the sun, then so be it. My bosses apparently like what I do enough to give me promotions and more money so my formula appears to be working.
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