Damage control...what the h*ll did I doI have a co-worker from h*ll and I finally snapped the other day. I basically committed social and career suicide all because of this stupid woman who gets on my nerves. Why did I do this? And how do I salvage what is left of my life? Ok, so this woman started about 7 or 8 months ago. She was hired to replace someone who was fired because he didn't know what he was doing. My opinion...poor training...but whatever. She is dating an old college buddy of our boss, so it was one of those "who you know, not what you know" type of hires. That bugs me to begin with, but I don't mind so much if the person they hire ends up being slightly good at what they do. Uh...no. This person is completely INCAPABLE OF LEARNING anything. She claims to have 16 years of experience in an office environment, yet CAN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO USE A PRINTER or send an email!! And it is not just the utter incompetence. She is the most annoying co-worker. We all have cubicles, there are no sound barriers, no office doors. She will YELL ACROSS THE ROOM to talk to someone, rather than getting up off her fat arse and going to see if they are there before asking a stupid question. And yes, every time it is a very STUPID question. And we explain things to her time and time again, but she just doesn't get it. She is also one of those people who likes to send out the chain emails, the really annoying ones, to EVERYONE in the company. She is just so incredibly loud all the time, talking about things that have nothing to do with work, and chit-chatting with everyone. She is rude to people but thinks she's being funny. Ya know, sometimes I just want to get my work done and not chit-chat about gossip! She also has a radio on her desk. Fine, no big deal. But we also have overhead music in the office. First it was the 2 competing stations of Christmas music...that almost drove me insane. But I was too nice to say anything. It's her right. Whatever. And she is ALWAYS eating at her desk. Chomp-chomping away as loudly as possible on potato chips and nasty stuff. This woman is ALWAYS talking about food. If we are going out to lunch, she starts talking about it at like 9:30, saying "aren't we going yet, what time is lunch, is it lunchtime yet?" And not only that...but just the other day I discovered that she doesn't even clock out for lunch. But I know that she is sitting there surfing the net and talking on the phone - but I guess since she is eating her slop at her desk she believes she should get paid to annoy the living sh*t out of me? I finally had enough of it all on Monday. She asked me yet another really stupid question that I had already explained to her before. I flipped. Gave her a somewhat rude response to her question, then left it alone. But then...I don't know what the heck is wrong with me...but I decided to go print out the section of the company handbook that talks about workplace etiquette, like being polite enough to turn your radio down and not eat carrots at your desk. I left it in her mailbox. I'm an idiot. I should not have done that. But I had to do SOMETHING she was driving me crazy. I couldn't go up to her and say her radio was too loud...then I would be made fun of throughout the office as that girl who complains about radios being too loud. Does that make any sense? What was I supposed to do? Just sit there and take it, allow her to be rude and inconsiderate and extremely loud and inappropriate? Just pretend it doesn't bother me? Just go on being fake nice? Anyways...I should not have left that stupid note in her box. So far they dont' think I did it but she is going around telling everyone how someone left this note and how they are so stupid and now she's just going to turn UP her radio just to #### them off. What the heck do I do now? I can't tell anyone that she bothers me, because it will just cause more problems. How the heck do I get any work done? I can't even hear myself think over her constant "hey, what's the weather supposed to be today" at the top of her lungs. There are times when I am on the phone and the person I am talking to can hear her talking...but I can't hear a word of what the person on the phone is saying. I need a new job so bad. Somewhere where they care more about WHAT you know, not WHO you know and who you screw. Somewhere where I work with people who have BRAINS and can learn simple tasks without constant training. Somewhere where I can just do my sh*t and get on with life without all the stupid junior-high-ish office politics and gossip. Does that even exist? "..Somewhere where I can just do my sh*t and get on with life without all the stupid junior-high-ish office politics and gossip." If you ever find that nirvana, let all of us know. Everyone who posts on these boards has the same complaint. I have no idea how you go about looking for a "grown-up" office. If you develop a process and patent it, you will be rich beyond your wildest dreams. Everyone on these boards would buy it immediately. We are all very tired of the childish stuff and the petty bull that gets in the way of the job. The games are tiresome. You are right--it is very off-putting and no one goes to a job to deal with more bull. We are there to do the best we can that day and then leave. We all have lives already and have other things to deal with. BTW, I don' t think you have damaged yourself or your job, even if you are not happy with the job as it is. You are not the only one who has to deal with the playground mentality and this particular idiot. I am sure others would have acted eventually as well. It may not be as big a deal as you think. Notify personal about this. If its in their rule book about this type of behavior is not permitted. You could do anon or talk to them. If this person is really connected then send a anon letter. I am sure you are not the only one that feels this way. The problem is it' s a small company and we don' t have an HR department, the person who handles payroll/benefits issues is actually our boss. The one who hired her. And I thought the anonymous note in her mailbox was it. I can' t just send an anonymous letter to her boss...he' s my boss...and all they seem to care about is WHO SENT THIS so they can beat the crap out of me for actually saying what needed to be said. I don't think you committed suicide... no one found the body! You came close though. However I have to imagine that other people feel the same way you do and most are thinking "I should have done that." It is a small office and the boss hired her so there aren't many options. You may have to live with it, maybe pull back your help to her and let her sink or swim on her own or band together with other employees and mimic her behavior (yelling across the office, playing the radio, etc...) Other option is to leave. Up to you. Wow do I feel your pain...I thought you were sitting in the office across from mine. No, there are no offices I have found in my short time on this planet that don't seem to condone - through management's inaction - irresponsible, juvenile and rude behavior. Management chooses to disregard a similar coworker of mine, and the only reason I have determined is that because she's just such a peach! This fuzzy little peach sleeps at her desk in plain view; religious Christmas music or Clay Aiken Christmas music from Halloween to New Year's (we sit in a shared cubby - I'm going nuts); if she hears a bird tweet on the radio, she sings a tweeting noise for an hour, or just mindlessly sings random noises or snippets of conversations (used to be Embarq commercials..."can't wrap joy AMEN ba dum dum dumm - can't wrap peace...OH yeah Lord ba dum dum dumm"); she talks on the phone all day long on personal calls (and is the RECEPTIONIST) thereby ignoring the phone, so I have been railroaded here to this job to answer the perceived amount of overflow calls that are going unanswered... Management does not get involved in this, we are supposed to police ourselves. They don't get in between personal struggles - that has been made clear to me a million times by the volume of inaction and the breadth of bizarre behavior that is tolerated by supervisors. I'm ready to cheer you on because I agree with what you did. The situation is similar here in that the golden peach's supervisor is the director's admin - a stupid, senseless peach cut from the same cloth. Complaints therefore go nowhere. Have you ever talked to your boss about this? Are you the only one who is bothered by her? I think you showed amazing restraint! Try this, if you are allowed to have a radio on your desk, why not bring in an iPod or portable CD player, rock her out of your life! You can' t respond to questions that you are unable to hear, she will have to find someone else to annoy. You should only have to walk around with a head set on until another co-worker explodes and tells her off. In the meanwhile, get your resume into circulation. I really feel for you! Good luck! | |
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