4 Things You Need To Keep In Mind To Be A Good Office Coworker
By Molly Fox
1. Do not office gossip.
There are probably things that are going to piss you off in an office every day. Whether it is a paper jam in the printer or a paper cut on your thumb in the most sensitive spot, things are going to try and get you down on a daily work day.
It is okay to voice some of those moment where you want to throw the copier out the window. When it comes to fellow coworkers try and keep your mouth shut. No one likes a gossiper especially in a professional setting. There are going to be people in your office that you just do not see eye to eye on certain things and someone you just cannot stand. You do not have to be BFFs with everyone in your office so it is okay to have these feelings. Do not go run your mouth to every other person in the office about the people you can’t stand. It does not look good on you and you should not be spreading around all the people you do not like. Keep it to yourself, or privately blog about it!
Go back to what your teacher said in 2nd grade, if you do not have anything nice to say, do not say anything. For all you know, your office could be bugged and your boss could be hearing every little gossipy thing out of your mouth. Call your mom, friend, boyfriend, or vent to your dog at home about your feelings towards other coworkers. Do not bring it to the office, try and make your work life as easy as possible for you. Remember to keep a positive attitude every work day, it will make your life easier. Also remember, do not take to social media about work. “My boss frickin SUCKS” is not a status you want to have posted for all your friends to see. It could fall into the wrong hands and you are forever screwed.
2. Lend a helping hand.
If you see a person in the next cubicle phone ringing off the hook or a million and half papers to go through, try and help them out a little. Ask them if they need help to run some copies or grab a cup of coffee for them. Yes, you may be busy yourself but when you have a million and half papers to go through and 100 e mails to read you may want someone to come over and ask you if you need anything. Even if they turned down your offer they will notice you lent a helping hand and eventually return the favor.
3. Keep your desk space clean.
Try and keep any personal space of yours clean, organization is everything. No one wants to walk by your desk and see your half eaten granola bar crumbs everywhere. It reflects you. I understand you cannot control the stacks of papers you need to go through that pile up on your desk. Try and keep in as neat as possible. Have a calendar on your desk with important dates and times, it shows you have organization skills.
4. Do not be on your phone all day.
Of course it’s okay to check the occasional Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat. Try and keep this at the minimum. I understand there is a lot that goes on in the social media world that you need to be updated on, but try and focus at the task at hand. You never know when your boss is turning the corner to see you LOLing at a funny vine. Trust me, from experience, your boss will not be happy.