Author Topic: Overheard at Work  (Read 13253011 times)

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12700 on: March 09, 2016, 10:45:42 AM »
Poke has several relatives within English. The word pocket comes from Middle English poket
Also the modern English word "pocket".
Also?

mm1970

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12701 on: March 09, 2016, 11:12:51 AM »
I've done this before, but it's always fun.  They got pretty close!


TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12702 on: March 09, 2016, 11:50:38 AM »
Poke has several relatives within English. The word pocket comes from Middle English poket
Also the modern English word "pocket".
Also?

Oops: thought I was commenting on an earlier message. Sorry to be redundant. :)

onlykelsey

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12703 on: March 09, 2016, 11:52:01 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!

JordanOfGilead

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12704 on: March 09, 2016, 12:43:16 PM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"

JLee

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12705 on: March 10, 2016, 09:28:13 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"
Eh...that really depends on the industry, work environment, etc.  Our parking lot is half empty at 9am, but plenty of people work past midnight.

Pooperman

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12706 on: March 10, 2016, 09:30:13 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"
Eh...that really depends on the industry, work environment, etc.  Our parking lot is half empty at 9am, but plenty of people work past midnight.

I'm in at 8am because I get to go home in time for dinner. 9:30 isn't early, nor is 8am, really.

JordanOfGilead

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12707 on: March 10, 2016, 10:16:08 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"
Eh...that really depends on the industry, work environment, etc.  Our parking lot is half empty at 9am, but plenty of people work past midnight.

I'm in at 8am because I get to go home in time for dinner. 9:30 isn't early, nor is 8am, really.
We have people in my office that get in as early as 6 or as late as 930. The people that get in super early do it so that they can take lunch at 1030 and leave by 3. The people that get in at 930 have a reputation for taking hour lunches (lunch times aren't really enforced, but we are "permitted" 30-60 minutes) and leaving before 5. If you know math, that does not add up to a full work day. I tend to get in around 730 so that I can have some time to myself before the rest of the people around me come in (8-830) and so that I can take a short lunch and leave by 4, getting home just as rush hour starts to hit on the roads. I prefer to have time to get something done around the house before dinner, but that's just me.

TL;DR - people that don't get in until 930 in the same office where others are getting in at 8 or earlier are generally the type of employee that is either 1) doing the bare minimum not to get fired or 2) "stays late" to try and impress the bosses without doing any extra work.

ringer707

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12708 on: March 10, 2016, 11:08:40 AM »
I rarely hear discussions of money at work, but did hear this the other day.

CW is looking to buy a house for him, his wife, 2 children, and 3rd on the way. Wife does not work, and CW has six figures of student loans. He's telling me and several other coworkers about putting an offer in on one house. He described it and sounds like a pretty good house, but then he adds in "the only problem is it doesn't have a garage, or a paved driveway, so we would have to take care of that once we moved in." All of my coworkers nodded in agreement. I felt like saying "or you could pay off your loans, or save for your new child... but clearly it's important that your Nissan doesn't sit in the rain or have to travel over gravel."

Kitsune

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12709 on: March 10, 2016, 11:09:20 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"
Eh...that really depends on the industry, work environment, etc.  Our parking lot is half empty at 9am, but plenty of people work past midnight.

I'm in at 8am because I get to go home in time for dinner. 9:30 isn't early, nor is 8am, really.
We have people in my office that get in as early as 6 or as late as 930. The people that get in super early do it so that they can take lunch at 1030 and leave by 3. The people that get in at 930 have a reputation for taking hour lunches (lunch times aren't really enforced, but we are "permitted" 30-60 minutes) and leaving before 5. If you know math, that does not add up to a full work day. I tend to get in around 730 so that I can have some time to myself before the rest of the people around me come in (8-830) and so that I can take a short lunch and leave by 4, getting home just as rush hour starts to hit on the roads. I prefer to have time to get something done around the house before dinner, but that's just me.

TL;DR - people that don't get in until 930 in the same office where others are getting in at 8 or earlier are generally the type of employee that is either 1) doing the bare minimum not to get fired or 2) "stays late" to try and impress the bosses without doing any extra work.

Or, in the case of my last job, they've realized that 'a crisis' hits every day, without fail, at 4:30pm (and that it's your responsibility to fix it), and so they're always leaving at 7pm anyway... and therefore start coming in at 10am.

(Worked for me, pre-kids: I'm not a morning person, so I'd slept in until 9, have a cup of coffee and read a book, and then shower and leave at 9:45 to be at work for 10. And getting home at 7:30pm is fine if your friends are students and artists and you're gonna be out until 1am on a weeknight anyway, becuase that's still 8 hours of sleep!)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12710 on: March 10, 2016, 11:16:20 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"
Eh...that really depends on the industry, work environment, etc.  Our parking lot is half empty at 9am, but plenty of people work past midnight.

I'm in at 8am because I get to go home in time for dinner. 9:30 isn't early, nor is 8am, really.
We have people in my office that get in as early as 6 or as late as 930. The people that get in super early do it so that they can take lunch at 1030 and leave by 3. The people that get in at 930 have a reputation for taking hour lunches (lunch times aren't really enforced, but we are "permitted" 30-60 minutes) and leaving before 5. If you know math, that does not add up to a full work day. I tend to get in around 730 so that I can have some time to myself before the rest of the people around me come in (8-830) and so that I can take a short lunch and leave by 4, getting home just as rush hour starts to hit on the roads. I prefer to have time to get something done around the house before dinner, but that's just me.

TL;DR - people that don't get in until 930 in the same office where others are getting in at 8 or earlier are generally the type of employee that is either 1) doing the bare minimum not to get fired or 2) "stays late" to try and impress the bosses without doing any extra work.

I don't know. I think in general your viewpoint is probably accurate. However, once I create the environment that allows that flexibility, I usually don't take lunches, come in late, and leave early. It's not the bare minimum, I'm just that freaking good.

MudDuck

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12711 on: March 10, 2016, 11:18:11 AM »
That's "yinz", not "y'uns".

I regularly hear both "yinz" and "yunz" around here, most commonly as, "yinz-guys" or "yunz-guys." Good old Pixsburgh.

mm1970

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12712 on: March 10, 2016, 11:21:51 AM »
haha, no problem thegrimsqueaker.

Not quite a mustachian problem, but the guy across the hall from me said to me (at 9:34 AM when he arrived): wow! I can't believe you're here this early every day!
When you leave, you should comment, "wow, I can't believe you're here this late every day!"
Eh...that really depends on the industry, work environment, etc.  Our parking lot is half empty at 9am, but plenty of people work past midnight.

I'm in at 8am because I get to go home in time for dinner. 9:30 isn't early, nor is 8am, really.
We have people in my office that get in as early as 6 or as late as 930. The people that get in super early do it so that they can take lunch at 1030 and leave by 3. The people that get in at 930 have a reputation for taking hour lunches (lunch times aren't really enforced, but we are "permitted" 30-60 minutes) and leaving before 5. If you know math, that does not add up to a full work day. I tend to get in around 730 so that I can have some time to myself before the rest of the people around me come in (8-830) and so that I can take a short lunch and leave by 4, getting home just as rush hour starts to hit on the roads. I prefer to have time to get something done around the house before dinner, but that's just me.

TL;DR - people that don't get in until 930 in the same office where others are getting in at 8 or earlier are generally the type of employee that is either 1) doing the bare minimum not to get fired or 2) "stays late" to try and impress the bosses without doing any extra work.

Or, in the case of my last job, they've realized that 'a crisis' hits every day, without fail, at 4:30pm (and that it's your responsibility to fix it), and so they're always leaving at 7pm anyway... and therefore start coming in at 10am.

(Worked for me, pre-kids: I'm not a morning person, so I'd slept in until 9, have a cup of coffee and read a book, and then shower and leave at 9:45 to be at work for 10. And getting home at 7:30pm is fine if your friends are students and artists and you're gonna be out until 1am on a weeknight anyway, becuase that's still 8 hours of sleep!)
Also a good point.

I tend to work 7:30 to 4:30, short or no lunch break.  Traffic is decent at these times.  And I have to pick up 2 kids, 2 locations, before 5:30 pm.  Husband does the morning drop-off, so works 9 to 5:45 pm, or thereabouts.  He also works at home at night during busy times.

Our office has a huge variety.  My boss generally doesn't come in until after 10, sometimes after lunch.  But he works later (we have afternoon conf calls with Asia daily), and he works till midnight many nights (from home after kids are asleep).  Several of my friends would come in late and work late because of "emergencies" (our fab shut down, we don't have these anymore).

After many years of being jerked around in bosses, job, salary (no raises) - some days I come in early and leave early.  Some days I come in late and leave late because of the conf call.  Some days I come in late and leave early (baseball practice, PTA meetings). I really don't stress it anymore.

BeFree

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12713 on: March 10, 2016, 11:52:20 AM »
Or, in the case of my last job, they've realized that 'a crisis' hits every day, without fail, at 4:30pm (and that it's your responsibility to fix it), and so they're always leaving at 7pm anyway... and therefore start coming in at 10am.

(Worked for me, pre-kids: I'm not a morning person, so I'd slept in until 9, have a cup of coffee and read a book, and then shower and leave at 9:45 to be at work for 10. And getting home at 7:30pm is fine if your friends are students and artists and you're gonna be out until 1am on a weeknight anyway, becuase that's still 8 hours of sleep!)

Exactly. I recently switched to an earlier shift and it's not good for the above reason. It is SO difficult to actually leave the office before 5, since something always comes up. I prefer to come in later and leave after the rush has left already.

In addition, for people who haven't, read the books Why Work Sucks and the Four Hour Work Week. Just because someone doesn't work a full work day doesn't mean they're not getting a full day's worth of work in. My specialty is process efficiency and over the years have gotten all my work down significantly in the time it takes to complete. So don't judge ;-)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12714 on: March 10, 2016, 11:59:34 AM »
Anecdotal evidence: On Fridays/Thursdays when I have a 3 day weekend as soon as I leave the building, my team is often let out around 1 or 2. We usually leave around 1:30 to 3:30 (normally it is 5; some of this is dictated by the train schedules and area happy hours). I think we get more done on those short days than we do on a full day.

Cookie78

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12715 on: March 10, 2016, 02:10:29 PM »
Anecdotal evidence: On Fridays/Thursdays when I have a 3 day weekend as soon as I leave the building, my team is often let out around 1 or 2. We usually leave around 1:30 to 3:30 (normally it is 5; some of this is dictated by the train schedules and area happy hours). I think we get more done on those short days than we do on a full day.

I often feel I'd be more productive working 4-5 hours than I am during a full day.

Kitsune

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12716 on: March 10, 2016, 05:53:18 PM »
Anecdotal evidence: On Fridays/Thursdays when I have a 3 day weekend as soon as I leave the building, my team is often let out around 1 or 2. We usually leave around 1:30 to 3:30 (normally it is 5; some of this is dictated by the train schedules and area happy hours). I think we get more done on those short days than we do on a full day.

I often feel I'd be more productive working 4-5 hours than I am during a full day.

Why I love working from home: no one bugs me or interrupts me, so I can do 2 office-days worth of work in about 5 hours... So I do a 4-5 hours of work at home, and then my boss thinks I'm super productive, I accomplish more work, AND I get free time. Win/win?

Seppia

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12717 on: March 10, 2016, 09:10:17 PM »
I get too easily distracted at home, I work in export sales so I'm often abroad and more efficient when I'm away on my own, so it's not a "need to be in the office" thing.
It's just that my brain associates
Home = free time
And I have a very hard time concentrating.

Travis

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12718 on: March 10, 2016, 09:16:50 PM »
Anecdotal evidence: On Fridays/Thursdays when I have a 3 day weekend as soon as I leave the building, my team is often let out around 1 or 2. We usually leave around 1:30 to 3:30 (normally it is 5; some of this is dictated by the train schedules and area happy hours). I think we get more done on those short days than we do on a full day.

I often feel I'd be more productive working 4-5 hours than I am during a full day.

Why I love working from home: no one bugs me or interrupts me, so I can do 2 office-days worth of work in about 5 hours... So I do a 4-5 hours of work at home, and then my boss thinks I'm super productive, I accomplish more work, AND I get free time. Win/win?

My most productive part of the day is lunch. I bag my own so everyone leaves and I can focus.  The problem is that is when all my "eureka!" moments happen, but nobody else is around to get answers or follow up from their earlier emails to me.

BeFree

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12719 on: March 10, 2016, 10:20:17 PM »
I often feel I'd be more productive working 4-5 hours than I am during a full day.

I work at hyper efficiency (the way my personality works, I can't take twice as long to do something that should take less time), so personally, I cannot "work" a full day. My brain would explode and I would get burned out exceptionally fast. I think more people are like this than care to admit, since in our society we are only deemed valuable if we act busy ALL the time, come in early, and leave late =P

But in more direct response to your comment, I think it's completely true for a lot of people. 4-5 hours of 100% focus is often greater than 8+ hours of more diluted focus. But everyone is different and works best in different environments and with different schedules, which is the greatest fault of typical corporate America, trying to put everyone in the same box =P

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12720 on: March 11, 2016, 05:52:46 AM »
My most productive part of the day is lunch. I bag my own so everyone leaves and I can focus.  The problem is that is when all my "eureka!" moments happen, but nobody else is around to get answers or follow up from their earlier emails to me.

Isn't that why we have writing in the first place? And it's not like emails expire....

ender

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12721 on: March 11, 2016, 06:47:32 AM »
My most productive part of the day is lunch. I bag my own so everyone leaves and I can focus.  The problem is that is when all my "eureka!" moments happen, but nobody else is around to get answers or follow up from their earlier emails to me.

Isn't that why we have writing in the first place? And it's not like emails expire....

Email is horribly inefficient, though.

MrMoogle

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12722 on: March 11, 2016, 08:27:14 AM »
Or, in the case of my last job, they've realized that 'a crisis' hits every day, without fail, at 4:30pm (and that it's your responsibility to fix it), and so they're always leaving at 7pm anyway... and therefore start coming in at 10am.

(Worked for me, pre-kids: I'm not a morning person, so I'd slept in until 9, have a cup of coffee and read a book, and then shower and leave at 9:45 to be at work for 10. And getting home at 7:30pm is fine if your friends are students and artists and you're gonna be out until 1am on a weeknight anyway, becuase that's still 8 hours of sleep!)

This was my first job.  I started out getting in at 6:30, then quite often having to stay until 7 or 8.  Then, over time, I started getting in at 10, and still having to stay until 7 or 8. 

Crazy how some people couldn't figure out something is due Friday until Thursday afternoon.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12723 on: March 11, 2016, 08:43:25 AM »
I often feel I'd be more productive working 4-5 hours than I am during a full day.

I work at hyper efficiency (the way my personality works, I can't take twice as long to do something that should take less time), so personally, I cannot "work" a full day. My brain would explode and I would get burned out exceptionally fast. I think more people are like this than care to admit, since in our society we are only deemed valuable if we act busy ALL the time, come in early, and leave late =P

But in more direct response to your comment, I think it's completely true for a lot of people. 4-5 hours of 100% focus is often greater than 8+ hours of more diluted focus. But everyone is different and works best in different environments and with different schedules, which is the greatest fault of typical corporate America, trying to put everyone in the same box =P

So true!

I had a boss once who chastised me for leaving after something like a ten hour day. I was just so mentally drained that staying longer would produce nothing of value. Of course, it's easier to work twelve hour days when it's almost exclusively meetings instead of highly technical, mentally tasking work...

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12724 on: March 11, 2016, 09:07:45 AM »
Email is horribly inefficient, though.
By what standard? I think it's perfect for holding a thought until the person who needs to receive it is disposed to do so. Unless you want everyone's desk to look like this:




Of course, it's easier to work twelve hour days when it's almost exclusively meetings instead of highly technical, mentally tasking work...

I actually find meetings to be the most mentally taxing aspect of my job. I've always hated them. There are exceptions: when a few skilled worker bees get together to really get shit done, it's great. But most of our meetings are bloated pieces of shit, loaded up with irrelevant tangents and unproductive time, and overpaid people talking for way too long about theoretically simple problems that could be solved outside the conference room. I usually want to stab myself in the face by the time it ends. I stay sane by crunching numbers on investment scenarios or near-term cash flow issues.

mm1970

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12725 on: March 11, 2016, 10:10:42 AM »
I often feel I'd be more productive working 4-5 hours than I am during a full day.

I work at hyper efficiency (the way my personality works, I can't take twice as long to do something that should take less time), so personally, I cannot "work" a full day. My brain would explode and I would get burned out exceptionally fast. I think more people are like this than care to admit, since in our society we are only deemed valuable if we act busy ALL the time, come in early, and leave late =P

But in more direct response to your comment, I think it's completely true for a lot of people. 4-5 hours of 100% focus is often greater than 8+ hours of more diluted focus. But everyone is different and works best in different environments and with different schedules, which is the greatest fault of typical corporate America, trying to put everyone in the same box =P
This is an interesting conversation.  When people talk about how efficient they are, I sort of giggled and thought "of course, if you finish your job in 4-5 hours, we'll give you more work to fill your day!"  That's corporate America for you.  One of my bosses was famous for the min 45 hour work week because you KNOW that extra 5 hours they are working!!

I too felt like I was more efficient working part time - got the same amount of work done, no BS, just come in and do it!!

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12726 on: March 11, 2016, 10:42:38 AM »

This is an interesting conversation.  When people talk about how efficient they are, I sort of giggled and thought "of course, if you finish your job in 4-5 hours, we'll give you more work to fill your day!"  That's corporate America for you.  One of my bosses was famous for the min 45 hour work week because you KNOW that extra 5 hours they are working!!

Idiots like that are the poster children for the MacLeod hierarchy, which posits that the least competent employees (Clueless) are promoted to middle management to serve as buffers between the Sociopaths at the top and the Losers at the bottom, who are actually more self-aware than the management but unwilling to work substantially harder for perceived marginal gains in status and compensation.
Not only is that kind of idea totally contrary to facts, you have to be kind of inhuman to espouse it regardless of your level of knowledge.

Quote
I too felt like I was more efficient working part time - got the same amount of work done, no BS, just come in and do it!!
Yep!
I'll be honest, I rarely work more than half the day. But I kick out some top-notch shit when I'm in a groove.

RyanAtTanagra

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12727 on: March 11, 2016, 11:05:38 AM »
I work at hyper efficiency (the way my personality works, I can't take twice as long to do something that should take less time), so personally, I cannot "work" a full day. My brain would explode and I would get burned out exceptionally fast. I think more people are like this than care to admit, since in our society we are only deemed valuable if we act busy ALL the time, come in early, and leave late =P

This is me, too.  I used to feel guilty about it, because I feel like I'm slacking off for a good part of the work day.  But I started to notice just how fast I get shit done when I hunker down to do something, compared to some others doing the same task, so I guess it's just how I work.  If two people get the work done on time it doesn't matter how they went about it, but it is frustrating being expected to look/be busy for 8 hours a day.  Sometimes I try to force myself to do a task slowly, but it's just not enjoyable.

I actually find meetings to be the most mentally taxing aspect of my job. I've always hated them. There are exceptions: when a few skilled worker bees get together to really get shit done, it's great. But most of our meetings are bloated pieces of shit, loaded up with irrelevant tangents and unproductive time, and overpaid people talking for way too long about theoretically simple problems that could be solved outside the conference room. I usually want to stab myself in the face by the time it ends. I stay sane by crunching numbers on investment scenarios or near-term cash flow issues.

"most of our meetings are bloated pieces of shit" made me lol.  That's how I see meetings too.  Sometimes the tech team will get together in the meeting room and rock some shit out, but for the most part it's a lot of nothing getting accomplished and taking a long time to do it.  I'm constantly fighting my company wanting to promote me into a management position, mostly because I would gouge my own eyes out if I had to deal with meetings all day.

zephyr911

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12728 on: March 11, 2016, 11:30:55 AM »
"most of our meetings are bloated pieces of shit" made me lol.  That's how I see meetings too.  Sometimes the tech team will get together in the meeting room and rock some shit out, but for the most part it's a lot of nothing getting accomplished and taking a long time to do it.  I'm constantly fighting my company wanting to promote me into a management position, mostly because I would gouge my own eyes out if I had to deal with meetings all day.
The worst part for me is, I'm just a facilitator type for most meetings. I publish an agenda, collect inputs, produce a slide deck, get everyone there on time, and then I'm expected to say nothing from start to finish. Sometimes I witness conflict based on complete misunderstandings, and it's not my place to set it right. Sometimes I know for a fact the discussion we're having isn't what we're supposed to be there for... doesn't matter. And when one guy in particular takes every meeting into overtime by blathering on about dumb shit, and then makes a show of apologizing at the end, I can't stand up and say "fuck off, if you really care then don't do it EVERY TIME!" hehe...

If I moved up the chain, at least I'd have a voice, but the bullshit would get exponentially worse, and at this point even the financial motive for advancement is marginal. I just won't be there long enough for it to add up to real money... so I spend my free time and mental energy on investment strategies and other outside stuff. I keep my boss happy, which isn't hard, and he takes care of me... my teammates are great and most of my peers across the other shops are cool when we collaborate... the rest of it, I just do my best to tune out and ignore.
« Last Edit: March 11, 2016, 11:33:29 AM by zephyr911 »

RyanAtTanagra

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12729 on: March 11, 2016, 11:36:11 AM »
The worst part for me is, I'm just a facilitator type for most meetings. I publish an agenda, collect inputs, produce a slide deck, get everyone there on time, and then I'm expected to say nothing from start to finish. Sometimes I witness conflict based on complete misunderstandings, and it's not my place to set it right. Sometimes I know for a fact the discussion we're having isn't what we're supposed to be there for... doesn't matter. And when one guy in particular takes every meeting into overtime by blathering on about dumb shit, and then makes a show of apologizing at the end, I can't stand up and say "fuck off, if you really care then don't do it EVERY TIME!" hehe...

Good lord, that sounds like the worst position ever.

Pooplips

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12730 on: March 11, 2016, 11:39:07 AM »
Reminds me of when I was in middle and high school. Between my older brother and I, we were playing some combination of hockey, football, baseball, or lacrosse, and we were caddying in the summer too. Mom and Dad bought another fridge for the basement just because they were tired of going to the grocery 3-4 times and didn't have room to buy more at a time. I know that between the two of us we were drinking 8 gallons of milk a week. I remember some friends that I ate lunch with my sophomore year of high school (so 15-16) calculated it out and figured out that I ate on average about 5,000 to 6,500 calories a day--large breakfast, mid-morning snack (which was the first lunch mom packed for the day), lunch (that mom packed), another "lunch" from the cafeteria, go home and snack, then eat dinner, then snack some more). Didn’t start gaining weight until I turned 21 though. I’m not sure why. *mtn cracks open his favorite frosty beverage*

Funny, when I played sports in high school a remember eating only a single serving of yogurt for lunch, and a couple slices of bread for dinner.  Ran 5 miles before school and 2 hour practice after. Guess the sport?


Sounds like a fellow wrestler to me. ;)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12731 on: March 11, 2016, 11:45:06 AM »
I also assumed wrestler, but gymnast would be an equally valid answer, in my experience.  Although we were discouraged from running long slow distances (theory being we needed to remain fast twitch athletes whose bodies shifted immediately in anaerobic state, not sure if that holds water).

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12732 on: March 11, 2016, 11:53:44 AM »
Good lord, that sounds like the worst position ever.
I used to list my position on FB as "bent over".
My job really isn't that bad though. I only spend 3-4 hours a week in meetings like what I described above.

Pooplips

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12733 on: March 11, 2016, 12:12:19 PM »
I also assumed wrestler, but gymnast would be an equally valid answer, in my experience.  Although we were discouraged from running long slow distances (theory being we needed to remain fast twitch athletes whose bodies shifted immediately in anaerobic state, not sure if that holds water).

That theory sounds interesting. I was always told gymnasts keep their weight down to decrease their rotational inertia. All I know is, losing weight kept my food bill low in college.

onlykelsey

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12734 on: March 11, 2016, 12:20:46 PM »
Quote
That theory sounds interesting. I was always told gymnasts keep their weight down to decrease their rotational inertia. All I know is, losing weight kept my food bill low in college.

When I retired out of gymnastics and started running, I had no idea what I was doing.  I went to a local middle school's track and everyone moved out of the inner lanes because I looked like a serious sprinter (six pack, generally pretty cut, ~15% body fat as a woman... not body builder cut, but in that direction).  I couldn't even make it around the track, haha.  So maybe the theory was right.

I think weight matters a fair amount for tall and short gymnasts for different reasons.  "Tall" gymnasts (ie me, then 5'1 or 5'2) tend towards moves that have them in a straight bodied, layed out position for the scoring bumps/aesthetics.  There, one or two lbs difference on the bars really matters.  For short gymnasts, a lb matters a lot because they're just so small overall and propelling 92 lbs in to the air is a lot different from 89 when their legs afford them basically no leverage.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12735 on: March 11, 2016, 01:10:02 PM »
The worst part for me is, I'm just a facilitator type for most meetings. I publish an agenda, collect inputs, produce a slide deck, get everyone there on time, and then I'm expected to say nothing from start to finish. Sometimes I witness conflict based on complete misunderstandings, and it's not my place to set it right. Sometimes I know for a fact the discussion we're having isn't what we're supposed to be there for... doesn't matter. And when one guy in particular takes every meeting into overtime by blathering on about dumb shit, and then makes a show of apologizing at the end, I can't stand up and say "fuck off, if you really care then don't do it EVERY TIME!" hehe...

Good lord, that sounds like the worst position ever.

+1 O.o

Glad it's only a few hours a week for you!

LeRainDrop

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12736 on: March 11, 2016, 01:54:47 PM »
Quote
That theory sounds interesting. I was always told gymnasts keep their weight down to decrease their rotational inertia. All I know is, losing weight kept my food bill low in college.

When I retired out of gymnastics and started running, I had no idea what I was doing.  I went to a local middle school's track and everyone moved out of the inner lanes because I looked like a serious sprinter (six pack, generally pretty cut, ~15% body fat as a woman... not body builder cut, but in that direction).  I couldn't even make it around the track, haha.  So maybe the theory was right.

OMG, that was totally me, too!  I remember that in third grade we started taking the "President's Challenge Fitness Test" that involved things like pull-ups, v-sit and reach, shuttle runs (sprinting), sit-ups, and running one mile.  I killed every single one of the events off the chart, except that stupid one mile run, I thought I was going to die.  They let me re-take that test to qualify for the top level because my first try was so bad.  Haha!  Memories :-)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12737 on: March 11, 2016, 03:48:53 PM »
Quote
That theory sounds interesting. I was always told gymnasts keep their weight down to decrease their rotational inertia. All I know is, losing weight kept my food bill low in college.

When I retired out of gymnastics and started running, I had no idea what I was doing.  I went to a local middle school's track and everyone moved out of the inner lanes because I looked like a serious sprinter (six pack, generally pretty cut, ~15% body fat as a woman... not body builder cut, but in that direction).  I couldn't even make it around the track, haha.  So maybe the theory was right.

OMG, that was totally me, too!  I remember that in third grade we started taking the "President's Challenge Fitness Test" that involved things like pull-ups, v-sit and reach, shuttle runs (sprinting), sit-ups, and running one mile.  I killed every single one of the events off the chart, except that stupid one mile run, I thought I was going to die.  They let me re-take that test to qualify for the top level because my first try was so bad.  Haha!  Memories :-)

Back in high school my 1 mile run was something around 12 minutes, some people could walk faster than I could run a mile.  Short sprints though I could lay it down.  My freshmen year I played football and one time I recovered a fumble and ran it for a 70 yard touchdown.

Now fast forward to today, last year I ran a 5k in 26min, which is a pace of 8:22/mi.  I also race bicycles and commonly do endurance rides of 70+ mi at least once a week, which is over 3 hours of riding each time.  Now weight matters a lot to me as a cyclist and I have dropped 20kg in the last couple years and am working on dropping another 5-10kg.   For flat rides and sprinting it matters less, but for hill climbing it can make a large difference.  As I see it some people will pay hundreds or thousands for lighter equipment just to shed a few grams, I still have 5000g to shed before starting to pay for light equipment.

mm1970

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12738 on: March 11, 2016, 04:27:13 PM »
"most of our meetings are bloated pieces of shit" made me lol.  That's how I see meetings too.  Sometimes the tech team will get together in the meeting room and rock some shit out, but for the most part it's a lot of nothing getting accomplished and taking a long time to do it.  I'm constantly fighting my company wanting to promote me into a management position, mostly because I would gouge my own eyes out if I had to deal with meetings all day.
The worst part for me is, I'm just a facilitator type for most meetings. I publish an agenda, collect inputs, produce a slide deck, get everyone there on time, and then I'm expected to say nothing from start to finish. Sometimes I witness conflict based on complete misunderstandings, and it's not my place to set it right. Sometimes I know for a fact the discussion we're having isn't what we're supposed to be there for... doesn't matter. And when one guy in particular takes every meeting into overtime by blathering on about dumb shit, and then makes a show of apologizing at the end, I can't stand up and say "fuck off, if you really care then don't do it EVERY TIME!" hehe...

If I moved up the chain, at least I'd have a voice, but the bullshit would get exponentially worse, and at this point even the financial motive for advancement is marginal. I just won't be there long enough for it to add up to real money... so I spend my free time and mental energy on investment strategies and other outside stuff. I keep my boss happy, which isn't hard, and he takes care of me... my teammates are great and most of my peers across the other shops are cool when we collaborate... the rest of it, I just do my best to tune out and ignore.

Ha, I'm not sure who has it worse, me or you.

I'm in this great position now - maybe this is the life of a project manager?  But - I have no control over anything or anybody. But I get asked ALL THE TIME if we are going to meet a schedule, and if not, why.

1.  We had a test problem.  Things were blowing up.  They sat for 12 days because the device guy was deciding what to do.  And maybe he decided and forgot to tell the guys who work for him.
2.  Then the data guy didn't review the data.  So 7 days go by.  I realize this (note I was out for 3 of those 7, and sick for a few others), and do the review myself
3.  The person who is supposed to ship them waited 10 days.  Even though I asked for it to happen earlier.

Etc etc, this works for everything we do.
- stuff is delayed at our offshore assembly house.  Because we are small peanuts and they will work on bigger projects first
- stuff is delayed at test because we do not have capacity and mgt won't agree to pay for more

I mean, it's all about too much stuff to do, and not enough people and LITERALLY nobody works for me.  I'm used to just going in and doing things myself to get them done.  Can't do that.  Can only pester.  Have I mentioned that I'm working on a ton of different projects, they are ALL really important (per mgt), but nobody who actually does the work even works for me?

I can work hard to remind people to move the stuff.  I can keep track so that we don't forget anything.  But I can't actually make people work.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12739 on: March 11, 2016, 06:55:52 PM »
"most of our meetings are bloated pieces of shit" made me lol.  That's how I see meetings too.  Sometimes the tech team will get together in the meeting room and rock some shit out, but for the most part it's a lot of nothing getting accomplished and taking a long time to do it.  I'm constantly fighting my company wanting to promote me into a management position, mostly because I would gouge my own eyes out if I had to deal with meetings all day.
The worst part for me is, I'm just a facilitator type for most meetings. I publish an agenda, collect inputs, produce a slide deck, get everyone there on time, and then I'm expected to say nothing from start to finish. Sometimes I witness conflict based on complete misunderstandings, and it's not my place to set it right. Sometimes I know for a fact the discussion we're having isn't what we're supposed to be there for... doesn't matter. And when one guy in particular takes every meeting into overtime by blathering on about dumb shit, and then makes a show of apologizing at the end, I can't stand up and say "fuck off, if you really care then don't do it EVERY TIME!" hehe...

If I moved up the chain, at least I'd have a voice, but the bullshit would get exponentially worse, and at this point even the financial motive for advancement is marginal. I just won't be there long enough for it to add up to real money... so I spend my free time and mental energy on investment strategies and other outside stuff. I keep my boss happy, which isn't hard, and he takes care of me... my teammates are great and most of my peers across the other shops are cool when we collaborate... the rest of it, I just do my best to tune out and ignore.

Ha, I'm not sure who has it worse, me or you.

I'm in this great position now - maybe this is the life of a project manager?  But - I have no control over anything or anybody. But I get asked ALL THE TIME if we are going to meet a schedule, and if not, why.

1.  We had a test problem.  Things were blowing up.  They sat for 12 days because the device guy was deciding what to do.  And maybe he decided and forgot to tell the guys who work for him.
2.  Then the data guy didn't review the data.  So 7 days go by.  I realize this (note I was out for 3 of those 7, and sick for a few others), and do the review myself
3.  The person who is supposed to ship them waited 10 days.  Even though I asked for it to happen earlier.

Etc etc, this works for everything we do.
- stuff is delayed at our offshore assembly house.  Because we are small peanuts and they will work on bigger projects first
- stuff is delayed at test because we do not have capacity and mgt won't agree to pay for more

I mean, it's all about too much stuff to do, and not enough people and LITERALLY nobody works for me.  I'm used to just going in and doing things myself to get them done.  Can't do that.  Can only pester.  Have I mentioned that I'm working on a ton of different projects, they are ALL really important (per mgt), but nobody who actually does the work even works for me?

I can work hard to remind people to move the stuff.  I can keep track so that we don't forget anything.  But I can't actually make people work.

Confirmed: this is the life of a project manager.

Double points if your boss then asks you what can be done to get things working and you manage to refrain from answering "next time, don't hire blithering idiots who can't do their damned jobs".

Patience: not my strong point.

Elliot

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12740 on: March 11, 2016, 07:21:04 PM »

OMG, that was totally me, too!  I remember that in third grade we started taking the "President's Challenge Fitness Test" that involved things like pull-ups, v-sit and reach, shuttle runs (sprinting), sit-ups, and running one mile.  I killed every single one of the events off the chart, except that stupid one mile run, I thought I was going to die.  They let me re-take that test to qualify for the top level because my first try was so bad.  Haha!  Memories :-)

I thought I was the only one!

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12741 on: March 12, 2016, 12:20:03 AM »
As I see it some people will pay hundreds or thousands for lighter equipment just to shed a few grams, I still have 5000g to shed before starting to pay for light equipment.

Good line! It's a bit of a standing joke among runners here that cyclists will spend thousands on a lighter water bottle or something, rather than just lose a few pounds. Cycling is very popular among middle-aged men in Britain and there is definitely a culture of "all the gear and no idea" competing with your friends to have the most expensive bikes.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12742 on: March 12, 2016, 03:25:44 AM »
Heard this from a friend: in her firm there was a big meeting because the budget of a project didn't add up. It was off by a couple of cents. One coworker said it was probably due to rounding up somewhere along the project and hey, it was only a tiny bit over. But that was too obvious and clear cut for upper management! They hired an external auditor, who in the end concluded that the diverging numbers were indeed due to rounding up. Costs of this investigation: 10k.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12743 on: March 12, 2016, 07:17:15 AM »
Heard this from a friend: in her firm there was a big meeting because the budget of a project didn't add up. It was off by a couple of cents. One coworker said it was probably due to rounding up somewhere along the project and hey, it was only a tiny bit over. But that was too obvious and clear cut for upper management! They hired an external auditor, who in the end concluded that the diverging numbers were indeed due to rounding up. Costs of this investigation: 10k.

And this, in turn, sounds like a convenient cover story to hire the external auditor. Better bring in an independent third-party to scrutinize for inappropriate conflicts of interest in that deal. ;)

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12744 on: March 12, 2016, 06:05:42 PM »
Annual bonuses were just deposited at my work, so I have heard some good ones this week.  Guy who recently bought a brand new 2015 Dodge truck said his payment is $690 and full coverage is insurance is $250.  Justified the purchase of the more expensive eco diesel option to save money on gas, obviously.  Now he wants the truck to be a different color.  Found someone to "wrap" the truck for $1800, which is of course a good "investment" because it will save the factory paint job and improve resale value.  Face, meet palm.

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12745 on: March 12, 2016, 06:11:04 PM »
Heard this from a friend: in her firm there was a big meeting because the budget of a project didn't add up. It was off by a couple of cents. One coworker said it was probably due to rounding up somewhere along the project and hey, it was only a tiny bit over. But that was too obvious and clear cut for upper management! They hired an external auditor, who in the end concluded that the diverging numbers were indeed due to rounding up. Costs of this investigation: 10k.

To an accountant, being $0.01 and $1,000,000.00 off is the same thing.   If the books don't add up, the books are wrong.  If the books are wrong, it could be because of a simple error or it could be someone doing something wrong - for a whole lot more than that $0.01.


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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12746 on: March 12, 2016, 07:07:16 PM »
Heard this from a friend: in her firm there was a big meeting because the budget of a project didn't add up. It was off by a couple of cents. One coworker said it was probably due to rounding up somewhere along the project and hey, it was only a tiny bit over. But that was too obvious and clear cut for upper management! They hired an external auditor, who in the end concluded that the diverging numbers were indeed due to rounding up. Costs of this investigation: 10k.

To an accountant, being $0.01 and $1,000,000.00 off is the same thing.   If the books don't add up, the books are wrong.  If the books are wrong, it could be because of a simple error or it could be someone doing something wrong - for a whole lot more than that $0.01.

Same with engineering.  I've been working on projects with errors aligned such that the final result was just a hair off of what was expected.  But when we went to correct it we find it was actually several large errors that mostly canceled each other out and would fail in a corner case

Merrie

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12747 on: March 12, 2016, 08:05:15 PM »
Sometimes I feel lucky that my job requires me to be present for a certain number of hours a day and that's it. I'm a retail pharmacist; I have to fill whatever prescriptions need to be filled that day, and then aside from that get whatever else done that I can. If I work extra to finish up some project, I can leave early another day when the other pharmacist is there. And I hardly ever have meetings and have an average of one 10-minute conference call a week that I'm not actually even required to be on. 

On the other hand, it would be nice to have a lunch break, particularly when working 12-hour days, but there are always tradeoffs.

dragoncar

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12748 on: March 13, 2016, 12:28:10 PM »
Sometimes I feel lucky that my job requires me to be present for a certain number of hours a day and that's it. I'm a retail pharmacist; I have to fill whatever prescriptions need to be filled that day, and then aside from that get whatever else done that I can. If I work extra to finish up some project, I can leave early another day when the other pharmacist is there. And I hardly ever have meetings and have an average of one 10-minute conference call a week that I'm not actually even required to be on. 

On the other hand, it would be nice to have a lunch break, particularly when working 12-hour days, but there are always tradeoffs.

Why are you guys so slow?  My wife once had to wait an hour for a prescription that merely required taking the bottle off the shelf and putting it in a bag.  No formulation required.  5 seconds.

Sofa King

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Re: Overheard at Work
« Reply #12749 on: March 13, 2016, 01:51:57 PM »
Sometimes I feel lucky that my job requires me to be present for a certain number of hours a day and that's it. I'm a retail pharmacist; I have to fill whatever prescriptions need to be filled that day, and then aside from that get whatever else done that I can. If I work extra to finish up some project, I can leave early another day when the other pharmacist is there. And I hardly ever have meetings and have an average of one 10-minute conference call a week that I'm not actually even required to be on. 

On the other hand, it would be nice to have a lunch break, particularly when working 12-hour days, but there are always tradeoffs.

Why are you guys so slow?  My wife once had to wait an hour for a prescription that merely required taking the bottle off the shelf and putting it in a bag.  No formulation required.  5 seconds.


LOL!!! I concur.  A person can be at a pharmacy with 1 person at the register and the Pharmacist is standing in the back looking rite at you and was doing nothing when you walked up. With no other customers there you give the person at the register your Rx and then you are told to come back over an hour later. WTF???????  LOL!!!  :  ) Just put the fucking pills in the little bottle.   

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!