I am a very social person and love making new friends. I highly value my friendships and want friends who return the sediment. After becoming a mom, my social activities reduced greatly making it harder to hang out with old friends or meet new cool people. The easiest solution seemed to be making friends with coworkers since that's where I spend the majority of my time these days. But, is the workplace the best place to be making friends? Are coworkers trustworthy enough to be considered friends when you're working in a competitive environment? Or, should work and personal relationships be kept separate?
Personally, I tend to get too comfortable around my coworkers and I say things I probably shouldn't. I think I'm talking to people who are my friends but who actually might be just looking out for their own best interest.
I'm curious, have you ever run into a scenario where workmate friendships turned ugly? Would you recommend making friends at work? Are you friends with coworkers and is it same as the friendships who have outside the company?
UPDATE: Poll Result 4/30/09 - 5/7/09
Do you make friends with coworkers?
28% Close friends
72% Acquaintances
00% No
00% Meh
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Why Talk When You Can Text?
Over the past couple of years, I have found myself communicating more through SMS and email and spending less time talking on the phone. Less than 5 years ago, I was struggling to keep from going over my minutes, yet now, I have the lowest amount of minutes possible on my AT&T plan and forking out the extra money for more SMS messages. The only people I still call on a regular basis are my parents.
Reasons for my distaste in talking on the phone include:
1. When someone calls me, the conversation takes place during the best possible time for the caller; however, it may not be the best time for me. I work, I have a toddler, I have my own stuff going on so how can I give the person on the other end of the line the courtesy of all my attention when I'm on the phone if it's not the best time for me?
2. I hate small talk. I like to cut out the extra motions and get right down to business. SMS and email allow me to get right to the point without the small talk.
3. Talking on the phone takes too much time. Sometimes I don't answer the phone because I just don't want to carry on a lengthy conversation at the time. I can check an email or a text message when I have a few seconds to spare and respond back quickly. More often than not, it is quicker to get ahold of me sending a SMS or email rather than calling me.
I say: If someone calls me, they don't really know me very well. I'm curious, what ways to you prefer to communicate? Is the old fashioned phone call dead?
UPDATE: Poll Results 4/18/09 - 4/25/09
How do you prefer to communicate?
16% Phone call
33% Text message
00% Email
16% Face to face
16% Social networking site
16% Meh
(I realized I should have added "Instant message" as a choice in the poll. If that would have been your choice or any other communication tool, please leave it in the comments. Thanks!)
Reasons for my distaste in talking on the phone include:
1. When someone calls me, the conversation takes place during the best possible time for the caller; however, it may not be the best time for me. I work, I have a toddler, I have my own stuff going on so how can I give the person on the other end of the line the courtesy of all my attention when I'm on the phone if it's not the best time for me?
2. I hate small talk. I like to cut out the extra motions and get right down to business. SMS and email allow me to get right to the point without the small talk.
3. Talking on the phone takes too much time. Sometimes I don't answer the phone because I just don't want to carry on a lengthy conversation at the time. I can check an email or a text message when I have a few seconds to spare and respond back quickly. More often than not, it is quicker to get ahold of me sending a SMS or email rather than calling me.
I say: If someone calls me, they don't really know me very well. I'm curious, what ways to you prefer to communicate? Is the old fashioned phone call dead?
UPDATE: Poll Results 4/18/09 - 4/25/09
How do you prefer to communicate?
16% Phone call
33% Text message
00% Email
16% Face to face
16% Social networking site
16% Meh
(I realized I should have added "Instant message" as a choice in the poll. If that would have been your choice or any other communication tool, please leave it in the comments. Thanks!)
Monday, April 6, 2009
Social Networking Or Social Notworking?
Recently, there has been lot of coverage about a study by the University of Melbourne that states the casual usage of sites like Twitter and Facebook increases productivity at work. The study shows that short breaks allow the mind to rest and thus increase the total concentrate on the days' assignments. While this study makes me feel better about all the times my boss has caught me online, I'm curious what has happened to old fashioned water cooler talk at work?
Would we rather spend our escape from the daily grind catching up on tweets or playing a quick round of Mob Wars instead of having a little face to face conversation with the people we spend 8 hours a day with?
Personally, I enjoy chatting it up with coworkers, but in the age of the iPod, it's hard to find anyone who isn't pumping music into their ear at a ridiculous volume and virtually unable to hear the phone on their desk ring much less engage in idle conversation. Therefor, I get my mental break online as do a lot of employees who have a computer and Internet access. This raises another question: What will become of our social skills? Do we lose the ability to strike up conversation without being in front of a screen? Are we more or less social when our main form of communication with our friends is Facebook?
One factor may be more people these days are keeping their personal and business lives separate and not thinking of the workplace as a setting for making new friends. As I do, more people are eating their lunches at their desks and avoiding the break room in order to do personal browsing. While all this social networking may be good for productivity, is it the best thing for us?
UPDATE: Poll Results 4/6/09 - 4/13/09
Do you feel social networking makes you more productive at work?
55% Yes, it helps
11% No, it interferes with work
33% My job restricts sites
00% Meh
How does social networking affect our ability to communicate in real life?
11% Has no effect
22% People are more social
22% People are less social
44% Meh
Would we rather spend our escape from the daily grind catching up on tweets or playing a quick round of Mob Wars instead of having a little face to face conversation with the people we spend 8 hours a day with?
Personally, I enjoy chatting it up with coworkers, but in the age of the iPod, it's hard to find anyone who isn't pumping music into their ear at a ridiculous volume and virtually unable to hear the phone on their desk ring much less engage in idle conversation. Therefor, I get my mental break online as do a lot of employees who have a computer and Internet access. This raises another question: What will become of our social skills? Do we lose the ability to strike up conversation without being in front of a screen? Are we more or less social when our main form of communication with our friends is Facebook?
One factor may be more people these days are keeping their personal and business lives separate and not thinking of the workplace as a setting for making new friends. As I do, more people are eating their lunches at their desks and avoiding the break room in order to do personal browsing. While all this social networking may be good for productivity, is it the best thing for us?
UPDATE: Poll Results 4/6/09 - 4/13/09
Do you feel social networking makes you more productive at work?
55% Yes, it helps
11% No, it interferes with work
33% My job restricts sites
00% Meh
How does social networking affect our ability to communicate in real life?
11% Has no effect
22% People are more social
22% People are less social
44% Meh
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