Top 10 Things That Drive Co-Workers Crazy

Training & Development, Jan, 2001 by Mary J. Nestor

Every day, co-workers do things that drive each other nuts. Failing to fill up the paper in the printer or copier. Not responding to voicemails and emails. Blaring radios and CDs from the other side of paper-thin cubicle walls.

Office discourtesies such as those take their toll in stress, wasted time and money, lost business, and frustrated employees. Hook two or three such irritants together on an already stressful day and it's enough to make a sane person go cubicle!

We're all responsible adults, right? At least we're supposed to act like we are. But if you're like most people, you're probably working without the luxury of support staff, and trying to please a demanding boss and irate customers while juggling multiple, high-priority projects with tight deadlines. As a result, the little things get pushed down the priority chain.

Certain office pet peeves repeat themselves over and over. So, about four months ago, my company, MJN Consulting, conducted a survey of more than 500 office professionals and asked them to rank 10 common office discourtesies according to their aggravation level. The participants were passionate in their responses.

Here's how they ranked the top 10 things that drive co-workers crazy:

10. playing the radio or CDs too loudly or constantly

9. taking the last cup of coffee and not making more

8. borrowing co-workers' office supplies and not returning them

7. clogging the email system with long messages, jokes, and downloads

6. cruising the office visiting people instead of working

5. setting the copy machine for special copy features and not changing it back

4. making a mess of the microwave and not cleaning it up

3. showing up late to meetings or answering cell phones in meetings

2. using the last piece of paper in the printer or copier and not refilling it

1. not returning phone calls, voicemail, email, or pages in a timely manner.

Participants of the survey added their own gripes, and more items were collected from radio and Internet talk shows across the United States and in Canada. In total, the survey generated about 40 maddening habits of inconsiderate co-workers.

Some of the top added-in items were

* making or taking phone calls on the speakerphone when your office is a cubicle surrounded by other cubicles

* sitting in a person's cubicle when he or she is on the phone

* turning the air conditioning down to 60 degrees--again and again

* saying you're busy, then taking personal phone calls or visitors

* telling co-workers all of your personal problems

* eating other people's food out of the refrigerator

* reading a co-worker's computer screen while he or she is working.

How can co-workers combat the perpetrators of office inconsideration? One talk-show caller says he practices the Gotcha method. He inserts a tiny piece of paper with his name on it into the barrel of each of his pens. Then, when one shows up on someone else's desk, he casually unscrews the pen, pulls out the paper, and says, "Gotcha!"

Another popular tactic is posting signs in conference and break rooms that offer gentle reminders to be considerate. One sign reads: "Your mother doesn't work here, so... (throw away your trash, straighten up the conference room, clean up the sink, microwave, refrigerator, and so forth)."

One respondent divided the original list into two categories of co-workers--"jerks," who should suffer severe vigilante office justice, and habitual "policy violators," who should be fired.

A talk-show host reminded people of what they were supposed to have learned in kindergarten: Be nice, clean up after yourself, respect others. He was right. In the kindergarten classroom as well as the office, little things do mean a lot.

A recent survey of 1,000 U.S. workers by the Saratoga Institute listed "positive work relations" as the top factor that makes employees more likely to stay with their employers. Little courtesies take little time, but they go a long way towards creating a positive, supportive workplace. They show that you care, respect others, and value their time and effort.

Though all of us are at times victims of office discourtesies, we must also admit to being occasional perpetrators. As Pogo says, "We have met the enemy, and it is us."

Here are a few suggestions on how to create a positive, considerate work environment:

* Fill it up. Replenish the copier, printer, fax machine, coffeepot, and so forth.

* Keep in touch. Return emails, voicemails, and pages so that others can get to work.

* Lower the volume. Tone down the phone calls, the radio, the CDs, and your voice.

* Work the day. Get down to business so other people can too.

The workplace has gone through a lot of changes, but one thing remains the same: As long as people have to work together, their success will be measured by how well they support each other in carrying out their individual and corporate responsibilities.

To receive the full survey report, send a request to Mary Nestor at mjnconsulting@mindspring.com.

Mary J. Nestor is president of MJN Consulting in Hilton Head, South Carolina; www.mjnconsulting.com, mjnconsulting@mindspring.com.