The Work Thread 2 - Get back to work!

[That's not a growth]

I just had an exchange in a group chat where I asked someone a question where I have multiple options and they just answered 'yes', which I pointed out wasn't addressing my question. Someone else piped up this was being pretty and we should just arrange a call to clear things up instead. JUST ANSWER QUESTIONS CLEARLY, WE DON'T NEED AN HOUR CALL FOR THIS.

[Oblomov Boblomov]

Someone else piped up this was being pretty and we should just arrange a call to clear things up instead.

Sounds like you've got an admirer get in there, you sly dog!

[Victor Mildew]

The worst ones are the people that call you seconds after you send an email. Chat for half an hour and you're referring to stuff you've clearly laid out in the email, and you get something along the lines of:

Me "the document with the mark ups"

"Which one?"

"The one attached to the email"

"Oh I've not opened it"

WHY ARE WE ON A CALL THEN

[Winckle]

I get the feeling some people are more than happy to fill their time with meetings. I swear my partner spends half her day in meetings rather than just being left to do, you know, her job.

She's on a meeting now actually. Daily thing where the team get together to....chat about anything I guess? Maybe get some important work issues in there too.

My partner was in an all-staff meeting yesterday when the usual lip-service to mental health agenda item came up and the discussion around "how can you look after your mental health" etc.

Amidst the usual suggestions of "make sure you're exercising and meditating" my partner chimed in that it would be very helpful for her mental health if there was a period of time where they can guarantee there won't be any meetings put in the diary.

She suggested one afternoon of guaranteed no internal meetings at the same time each week (the meeting culture at her workplace meant she didn't feel confident enough to suggest a whole day) and so many people immediately piped up very enthusiastically for that idea.

When it's been going for a few weeks she's going to push for a full day.

twitter.com/patjd/status/1108272774483578880

[Tomous]

I just had an exchange in a group chat where I asked someone a question where I have multiple options and they just answered 'yes', which I pointed out wasn't addressing my question. Someone else piped up this was being pretty and we should just arrange a call to clear things up instead. JUST ANSWER QUESTIONS CLEARLY, WE DON'T NEED AN HOUR CALL FOR THIS.

Do you think we should do a, b or c?

Yes.

Well, which one?

STOP BEING PETTY!!!!!!!

[aayl1]

I get the feeling some people are more than happy to fill their time with meetings. I swear my partner spends half her day in meetings rather than just being left to do, you know, her job.

She's on a meeting now actually. Daily thing where the team get together to....chat about anything I guess? Maybe get some important work issues in there too.

My partner was in an all-staff meeting yesterday when the usual lip-service to mental health agenda item came up and the discussion around "how can you look after your mental health" etc.

Amidst the usual suggestions of "make sure you're exercising and meditating" my partner chimed in that it would be very helpful for her mental health if there was a period of time where they can guarantee there won't be any meetings put in the diary.

She suggested one afternoon of guaranteed no internal meetings at the same time each week (the meeting culture at her workplace meant she didn't feel confident enough to suggest a whole day) and so many people immediately piped up very enthusiastically for that idea.

When it's been going for a few weeks she's going to push for a full day.

twitter.com/patjd/status/1108272774483578880

Exactly like that. I find the hypocrisy of it all the more stressful tbh. If they at least admitted it outright you'd know where you stand.

[Corazon de Leon]

Wee bit frustrated at the moment with my second job, which decided not to pay me in December(for November's work) despite me getting the timesheet and supplementary documents they needed to them prior to the stated deadline. They've now told me I'll be paid at the end of January unless payroll can do something directly, and that it's my fault for not getting timesheets in on time.

Now granted, I'm usually pretty bad for not sending timesheets in on time, I blame it on having ADD and filling out forms causes me real trouble. But I knew I needed this payment ASAP(to pay off a laptop that I had to buy, in part, to adapt to the WFH demands of the job), and all the forms were filled out and sent through well within time. I even have confirmation from the admin staff that they would be processed. So I'm quite annoyed.

[Balladeer]

She suggested one afternoon of guaranteed no internal meetings at the same time each week (the meeting culture at her workplace meant she didn't feel confident enough to suggest a whole day) and so many people immediately piped up very enthusiastically for that idea.

When it's been going for a few weeks she's going to push for a full day.

I give it a week, maybe two.

[Qikz]

I am so strawberry floated come Monday. My sleep schedule is sooooo strawberry floated.

[Jenuall]

All these people getting triggered about meetings!

Now I'm in no way going to deny that superfluous meetings are an annoying thing, I've sat through more than my fair share of them! But sometimes a meeting is far more effective than pinging emails back and forth. Different people work, communicate, learn and understand things in different ways and for some an email just isn't the right mechanism. Also certain problems are better solved in a more direct collaborative environment like a meeting than through email chains or IM discussions

[<]:^D]

yeah but people are complaining about the pointless bits of meetings not meetings in Jenuall

[Cuttooth]

The number of times we go through this same conversation every few months suggests we need a meeting to hash out a decision once and for all.

[<]:^D]

Friday 4pm work for everyone? ill put it in the calendar.

[Oblomov Boblomov]

Friday 4pm work for everyone? ill put it in the calendar.

Either that or lunchtime please.

[Balladeer]

Friday 4pm work for everyone? ill put it in the calendar.

Can’t do 4pm. Move to 5? Everyone seems to be free then.

[<]:^D]

i think Ad7 prefers lunchtimes so might go with that, thanks for the suggestions!

[Jenuall]

Can I suggest we have a pre-meeting so that we can go through things and get an agenda together for the meeting itself? I can see you've got your lunch out so why don't we do it now?

yeah but people are complaining about the pointless bits of meetings not meetings in Jenuall

Now I've hosted meetings in the past but I can't say I've ever had a meet "in" me!

[<]:^D]

first time for everything

[Victor Mildew]

i think Ad7 prefers lunchtimes so might go with that, thanks for the suggestions!

That I do, thanks

Or perhaps we could do 4.45? No possible way it will over run past your finishing time.

[Errkal]

My partner was in an all-staff meeting yesterday when the usual lip-service to mental health agenda item came up and the discussion around "how can you look after your mental health" etc.

Amidst the usual suggestions of "make sure you're exercising and meditating" my partner chimed in that it would be very helpful for her mental health if there was a period of time where they can guarantee there won't be any meetings put in the diary.

She suggested one afternoon of guaranteed no internal meetings at the same time each week (the meeting culture at her workplace meant she didn't feel confident enough to suggest a whole day) and so many people immediately piped up very enthusiastically for that idea.

When it's been going for a few weeks she's going to push for a full day.

Where I am have sort of done this. We have a company wide ban on meeting starting befor 930, after 430 and between 12.30 and 1.30, also all meetings need to be finished by those times as well.