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I just started working in an office where there are 15 people in one big room, lined up against tables around the walls. It's impossible to concentrate as they are constantly talking and joking around with each other. I heard one woman loudly whisper to another that I'm "icy" because I try to stay focused on my work rather than talk to the others. Another person said that I'm "on edge," I guess because it's obvious that the chattiness is bothering me.
How do people get any work done in that kind of environment?
Great question! I can only answer for myself. For 30+ years I had my own office, all to my myself. Then, in the shadow of my retirement and a move to a very new and modern building, I was placed in one of these rabbit warrens, as there only a few closed office spaces. In those 30+ years, I developed habits consistent with a single person office, isolated from others. In our new spaces, silence was the rule, but I had never been silent in my office for 30+ years.
So, things did not go smoothly until all the people around me adjusted. That took them almost a year. I retired a year after at that.
So you are not distracted at all by the background noise & people's chatter? What about the total lack of privacy?
I think for me, the lack of privacy would be the worst. I usually bring my own lunch and eat at my desk. I can not imagine everyone staring at me when I eat. Everybody listening in when I make a personal phone call for which I need to refer to something on my screen and can not just walk out. And just the idea that someone could also be staring at me and I may not even notice. And even worse, if for some unlikely reason there is a very attractive woman nearby, perhaps I would be hard pressed not to stare at her myself...
I think cubicle with sufficiently high partitions are the best kind of office environment. They give a bit of privacy and muffle the sound a little bit. But on the other hand, they don't really hinder team work as there is no closed door that someone needs to knock on to se you...
It doesn't distract met at all no. I often listen to music in headphones at work (~50% of the time), but that's just because I enjoy that. I did that at my old company as well even in a private office. The privacy isnt an issue for me. I bring my lunch, as do many people here, and I eat it at my desk. I usually take my lunch break outside to walk to a museum downtown or read a book in a park nearby.
In regards to an attractive person of the opposite sex, no one should need a physical barrier to keep themselves from staring. That's just called being polite.
I understand that not everyone is going to like an open office. But I rather enjoy it. We are on the 18th floor of a 50 story building with windows on all sides. It'd be a shame to lose that view from my seat just for some privacy. But that's just me. For reference, I'm an engineer at an AE firm.
Well, I'm going to start sending out resumes this evening.
We have a cafeteria where I work and the group I'm with all eat together every day. I was sitting at a small table by myself, messing around with my phone while I was eating, and one of the women came by and gave me a dirty look, then said "don't you want to eat with the rest of us?" I simply said "no, that's okay" and she turned her back to me and rejoined the others.
Later this afternoon, a guy said to another worker in our big room in a normal voice "I don't think he likes us."
I didn't hear the other worker's response.
I thought maybe I was doing something wrong, but I do say good morning and bye to them, and I have never been rude to any of them, but I just keep to myself. They have a real problem with that and it has gone from whispering to open hostility, so I'm getting out of here as soon as I can find a new job.
Well, I'm going to start sending out resumes this evening.
We have a cafeteria where I work and the group I'm with all eat together every day. I was sitting at a small table by myself, messing around with my phone while I was eating, and one of the women came by and gave me a dirty look, then said "don't you want to eat with the rest of us?" I simply said "no, that's okay" and she turned her back to me and rejoined the others.
Later this afternoon, a guy said to another worker in our big room in a normal voice "I don't think he likes us."
I didn't hear the other worker's response.
I thought maybe I was doing something wrong, but I do say good morning and bye to them, and I have never been rude to any of them, but I just keep to myself. They have a real problem with that and it has gone from whispering to open hostility, so I'm getting out of here as soon as I can find a new job.
Holy cow, you just described my personal version of hell. Yeah, time to get your resume together and get the heck out of that nightmare. This is like high school level nonsense. Everyone has different social and privacy needs, can't they just let you be? These are the type of people that would sabotage your job and professional reputation because they are "offended" that you don't want to be their BFFs for 40 hours a week.
When you're a kid, they tell you you won't deal with bullies once you get out of school and become an adult. No, it never stops. It just takes different forms and it can destroy a career and a life. People are freaking crazy.
I work in one. I use headphones all day long. They help me concentrate on my work and lessen the chatter.
Good point. If you can do that, it's shutting out at least one of the senses. I suppose one could also stack boxes and documents on the ends of the work stations, to build up a bit of a wall, for the visual aspects. It's conceivable at least. I'm being serious by the way
Ahhh, the open office concept. Quite possibly the biggest productivity-killer in the modern job market. It SUCKS.
I recall my most recent experience of working in one...... I was working with 4 others in an office, cubicles right next to each other, myself with two other males and 2 females. One of the females must have had some kind of gastric issue because she was constantly burping and farting( and not in a way where she was trying to muffle it, just letting em rip). The two females were off-work friends and were constantly gossiping about ****.... relationships, movies, someone else in the company, just whatever the f**k came to mind that day.
It got to a point where I complained to my boss about the environment being a distraction due to excessive chit-chat. Her solution: wear earphones. Ok.....so I started wearing earphones but this also meant that when one of my immediate colleagues were trying to call out to me, I couldn't hear them. Oh it gets better...the gossiping, farting female coworker then complains to my boss that I'm tuning myself out which makes trying to call out to me a nuisance. So then, the boss tells me to wear one earphone so there's one unobstructed. Of course, that defeated the purpose of telling me to wear headphones in the first place as I was back to hearing the farting/burping/gossiping that I initially complained about and was told to wear headphones for. You can't make this **** up.
Needless to say, I was out of that place in a year but had been looking for a job since like 3 months after starting. That was a giant NOPE for me.
Ahhh, the open office concept. Quite possibly the biggest productivity-killer in the modern job market. It SUCKS.
I recall my most recent experience of working in one...... I was working with 4 others in an office, cubicles right next to each other, myself with two other males and 2 females. One of the females must have had some kind of gastric issue because she was constantly burping and farting( and not in a way where she was trying to muffle it, just letting em rip). The two females were off-work friends and were constantly gossiping about ****.... relationships, movies, someone else in the company, just whatever the f**k came to mind that day.
It got to a point where I complained to my boss about the environment being a distraction due to excessive chit-chat. Her solution: wear earphones. Ok.....so I started wearing earphones but this also meant that when one of my immediate colleagues were trying to call out to me, I couldn't hear them. Oh it gets better...the gossiping, farting female coworker then complains to my boss that I'm tuning myself out which makes trying to call out to me a nuisance. So then, the boss tells me to wear one earphone so there's one unobstructed. Of course, that defeated the purpose of telling me to wear headphones in the first place as I was back to hearing the farting/burping/gossiping that I initially complained about and was told to wear headphones for. You can't make this **** up.
Needless to say, I was out of that place in a year but had been looking for a job since like 3 months after starting. That was a giant NOPE for me.
Sounds more like terrible coworkers than an issue with an open office. Certainly an open office contributes to the issue if you're surrounded by unprofessional people tho.
I used to work in a open office years ago and I didn't really like it. Mainly due to the lack of privacy.
Now I work in an office where everyone was given the choice of working remotely full-time and 95% took it so I never see anyone anymore and I am oftentimes the only person in the office.
I wish I could hear talking or joking or any kind of social banter. Its seriously lonesome!
For the OP, I'd invest in some good earbuds and focus on what you need to.
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