Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm just curious what peoples' experience has been with music in nominally quiet shared office spaces - sales, management, white collar as opposed to things like warehouses, work floors, etc.
I just had an 'orrible experience with this and some casual acquaintances have said it's become fairly common, which I both believe and can't believe...
Company had three areas: tech, warehouse and front office. Warehouse often had music on, generally low and pleasant. Tech area (young crowd) had music sometimes but was often too busy to tolerate it. Office... had music on open to close, 9-10 hours straight, every day. It was a typical small company, with a bullpen area and private offices around two sides. The bullpen was five cubicles in a row. I was in the second (from the front entrance), two 30-something sales associates were next, and a much older sales associate on the end. I faced the CEO's office.
In cubicle one was a Pandora box that was only off if I happened to walk in a few minutes before either sales associate. Most often (in eight weeks) it was on or being turned on as I came in. Since the only active listeners were the two millennials, it had to be loud enough to cross my space to theirs.
I generally prefer a quiet working environment; my work is done between my ears and I need to think. I don't have a lot of rote stuff I can do with limited attention. So I only listen to music when I am in certain modes and working on certain projects; I don't need, don't want and don't like continual wall o' noise.
And noise it was - headbanger crap, rap, hip-hop and power trio stuff I got tired of about the time these two were born. (Yeah, I'm an old guy.) As much as I can't work even to pleasant background music every office hour, I really can't tolerate AC/DC, Metallica, Journey, ZZ Top, and everything from moderate rap to hardcore "hey, mothaf--r" stuff pounding at me nonstop. And beyond "quiet background" level. Even the occasional change to country, crossover, milder pop etc. was barely tolerable.
But it gets worse. Being an unpaid Pandora connection on a pirate (ad-blocking) box, it had continual starts and stops and skips - sure as sunrise, if something came on I could actually tolerate, it would get cut off in the first minute and skip back to "Highway to Hell."
The playlist was shorter than a top-40 station, no matter how many times they jumped up to switch channels. I heard the same 20-30 songs every two days or so. Sometimes within hours.
And they sang along. Not in any kind of harmonious way, but in that maddening out-of-sync way: the first riff of "Highway to Hell" would play, and one of them would sing out, "HIGHWAY TO..." and nothing more. Or they'd hear a snatch of lyric and air-guitar the main riff instead.
Which the boss did, too, every time he walked through and then closed his door.
Remember, this is not a shop floor or a cell-phone store or a construction site, but a white-collar tech company management floor - three C's, two finance people, three sales people and me. And the front-door walk-in for (fairly infrequent) visitors and customers. I waited for the day a major client walked in to the strains of "hey, mothaf--r, you mothaf--r...")
I tried every noise-blocking thing I could, with the only mildly successful one being noise-cancelling headphones playing music I could stand... but even then, I really need something more like quiet to work effectively; even my own choices of music were often distracting. Earplugs, earmuffs, etc. are mostly designed (again maddeningly) to block harmful sounds... but permit normal conversation, for convenience and safety. Which meant I could hear the music even more clearly...
And lest you get the idea I can't stand anything besides string quartets, my taste runs to some very hard-edged and rowdy stuff, just not worn-out classic rock crap from my high school days... and I don't try to listen to it while working.)
It's all moot, as when on the last day of week 8 I finally sent the boss (my immediate superior) a note asking about a quieter work area, he called me in and handed me a final check; he'd already decided my temporary services weren't working out and was off on a different road.
But of all the lingering issues, that even this rather odd company owner/boss would tolerate thrash-noise music in the front office, nonstop, to please two relatively junior sales-expeditors... is puzzling to me. (Why didn't I say something earlier? New guy, temporary to possible FT hire situation, delicate politics, obviously an established and tolerated situation, didn't want to be a jerk or troublemaker... let it go and tried to adapt as long as I could.)
(And no, it wasn't just me, but when I quietly grumbled to the others, the response was clearly "don't bother.")
A friend told me that a friend of hers finally had to quit a sales position, because the bulk of the sales force wanted similar crap-rock-noise continually and like me, she couldn't think straight after a few hours a day of it.
So, way down here at the bottom - who else has put up with this kind of nonsense? And what in the hell is wrong with a company owner who permits this kind of 50-hour-a-week imposition on everyone else in an office?
You see, the thing about annoying people is they generally have no idea they are annoying. The ones who do probably just don't care, which is what your situation sounds like.
You're infinitely better off not working at that company anyway, but I would agree with you that any personal music should not be played at that level. In today's day and age with cell phones and bluetooth head sets, it really makes no sense why someone simply couldn't use those vs. subjecting everyone else to their noise. I'd probably have sabotaged their radio in some way, but I realize as a temp you were treading on thin ice.
I worked in an open office environment where they often played pop music and other various genres throughout the day, usually at a quieter level. It never really bothered me, but if it did, I always brought in a pair of noise isolating earbuds with Comply foam ear tips to block out the noise. For added noise cancellation, you can also download a free white noise app on your smart device and play it at a comfortable level. I downloaded a 'DeepSleepPro' app for $1.99 from the iOS store and use it whenever I need the proper level of noise cancellation to concentrate in a noisier environment. The paid version allows you to play on an endless loop, which is great, because I often forget that it's even on.
Bose QuietComfort 35 headphones are (some of) the best in the biz as far as noise cancellation technology is concerned. It's popular for business people who often travel by plane, if that tells you anything.
You see, the thing about annoying people is they generally have no idea they are annoying. The ones who do probably just don't care, which is what your situation sounds like.
I think they knew their choice wasn't... appreciated, but the broken company structure kept any change from even being suggested.
Quote:
You're infinitely better off not working at that company anyway...
Oh, I agree, but I'd hoped to make a good go of it before moving on. I had good traction on the projects I'd been hired for, but the owner was the kind with a 20-second attention span and always on to a better idea... which apparently was hiring a company some Old Boy had recommended to replace my efforts. (That most of the trouble they were in was because they are stuck in an Old Boy loop that's shrinking, and that I'd be surprised if any contract company had the specific, matching old-school knowledge I do, is irrelevant. I am typing this to the gentle snores of my dog.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by -Chatterboxx-
Bose QuietComfort 35 headphones are (some of) the best in the biz as far as noise cancellation technology is concerned. It's popular for business people who often travel by plane, if that tells you anything.
Well, Bose is popular with people who travel on planes because people who travel on planes tend to buy what's massively advertised at them. But my Sony's work just fine. I hadn't thought of a white-noise app, though - I will definitely keep that in mind. The 'phones let just enough of the sound leak past that it was distracting, and even a low music volume masked it, but... it wasn't quiet. A noise app would be perfect.
OTOH, I won't put up with such a situation for more than a few days, ever again. It was only because I had hopes for a very successful run with this company, because of a unique fit between parts, that I didn't deal with it (and probably get shown the door) earlier.
Just crazy, though. I have run larger companies and would never have allowed one or two employees to control the work environment to the even mild detriment of others. There were SO many alternative solutions, but when the boss is apparently on board... sigh.
Well, Bose is popular with people who travel on planes because people who travel on planes tend to buy what's massively advertised at them. But my Sony's work just fine. I hadn't thought of a white-noise app, though - I will definitely keep that in mind. The 'phones let just enough of the sound leak past that it was distracting, and even a low music volume masked it, but... it wasn't quiet. A noise app would be perfect.
OTOH, I won't put up with such a situation for more than a few days, ever again. It was only because I had hopes for a very successful run with this company, because of a unique fit between parts, that I didn't deal with it (and probably get shown the door) earlier.
Just crazy, though. I have run larger companies and would never have allowed one or two employees to control the work environment to the even mild detriment of others. There were SO many alternative solutions, but when the boss is apparently on board... sigh.
Well, on a personal note, having tested the QC35s in a noisy Best Buy on a number of occasions, I will attest to them being some of the best I've ever used. I'm sure others are sufficient. I'm currently using a pair of BeatsX wireless earbuds. The key to earbuds working effectively is to create the perfect seal in the ear canal. That's where the Comply Foam Ear Tips come into play. They do a superb job of isolating sound in the ear, and blocking sound from outside the ear.
White noise app. Trust me, it's a game changer! I work with spreadsheets, data sets, and code all day, and white noise apps have become a critical piece of my tool box.
Well, on a personal note, having tested the QC35s in a noisy Best Buy on a number of occasions, I will attest to them being some of the best I've ever used.
Not to turn this into a bashing thread or smudge your very useful advice, but... with a background at the intersection of electronics engineering, marketing and economics, I usually find that suspicion of MMCs (massively marketed companies) is justified. Bose, Dyson, Oreck all come to mind as companies whose marketing efforts dwarf the rest of their operation, with those costs sometimes matching or exceeding actual fulfillment costs. That should tell you something.
Now, now, I saw you turn on the white noise there.
Not to turn this into a bashing thread or smudge your very useful advice, but... with a background at the intersection of electronics engineering, marketing and economics, I usually find that suspicion of MMCs (massively marketed companies) is justified. Bose, Dyson, Oreck all come to mind as companies whose marketing efforts dwarf the rest of their operation, with those costs sometimes matching or exceeding actual fulfillment costs. That should tell you something.
Now, now, I saw you turn on the white noise there.
You don't need to take my word for it. You can sort through the reviews yourself. My evidence is actually only anecdotal and quite limited. I haven't really tried that many other noise cancelling headphones to be honest. I stick with wireless earbuds mostly, and very specific types of wireless earbuds, for portability and comfortability preferences.
This site provides some pretty good technical reviews on headphones, but I'm sure there are better ones out there. But I don't think you need the best of the best to fix what you're dealing with. In fact, any 'ol pair of cheap earbuds with noise isolating ear tips and a white noise app should do the job.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,572 posts, read 81,167,557 times
Reputation: 57798
Those of us with an office will use the speakers, at low volume and listen to music online, or with the smartphone while working. Those in cubicles do the same but with earphones to keep from bothering their neighbors. I haven't seen anyone go nuts over the quality of the headphones, most are just using cheap earbuds.
Those of us with an office will use the speakers, at low volume and listen to music online, or with the smartphone while working. Those in cubicles do the same but with earphones to keep from bothering their neighbors. I haven't seen anyone go nuts over the quality of the headphones, most are just using cheap earbuds.
Yes, there are reasonable ways to share the noise/quiet space in an office. That's what frustrated me - simply allowing these two to listen in their cubicle space would have been easy, but for some reason the boss let them hog the ether. I wasn't there long enough to figure out why. Nothing obvious jumped out (e.g. these two were anything but the base of the sales pyramid or top sellers or whatever).
As for quality, I was just having some fun sniping at a marketing-first brand. Irrelevant and a tad rude.
For the right pay, I can deal with nearly everything.
I hate headache music - which is what you describe. So thoughtless.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
But my Sony's work just fine. I hadn't thought of a white-noise app, though - I will definitely keep that in mind. The 'phones let just enough of the sound leak past that it was distracting, and even a low music volume masked it, but... it wasn't quiet. A noise app would be perfect.
I work with spreadsheets, data sets, and code all day, and white noise apps have become a critical piece of my tool box.
