ajcjobs > BlogBreak > Archives > 2008 > October > 13 > Entry
Office parasites on the prowl
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
During these tough economic times, office parasites are on the rise. Freelance blogger Chandra Fox discusses how to handle those pesky office moochers:
We all know them. If you don’t know of a parasite in your office, is it you? Here is how you can identify the office parasite. These are the co-workers that take home leftovers from office parties, do not offer to pay for gas money when they carpool on any ride, always complain (stealing energy of others counts) and the tab is always short when this office parasite is in the mix.
Manage the Situation: To effectively handle an office parasite, there is not much to do about stopping them from taking home leftovers. But you can ask them for money before you drive anywhere, ignore the complaints and tell them you like to stay positive and not discuss office politics and proactively calculate each person’s contribution for a tab that comes up short. Manage the situation head-on so you don’t become a mark.
Be Professional: If you can handle the office parasite with class, it will stop happening. To confront the office parasite is never a good idea. Defensive won’t even begin to describe the situation you will find yourself in. People all know when one person is taking more than their fair share. If you just don’t allow the situation to involve you or your money, you will find yourself happy at work when it comes to co-workers. If you start arguments or gang the office up against the parasite, it will take too much of your energy.
Hang in there. After handling the office parasite with professionalism and class it should create less stress on you.
Have you ever had to deal with an office parasite? What worked in your situation?
Comments
By Office Parasite Bad Habits
October 16, 2008 12:23 PM | Link to this
Also, don’t forget about the parasites that talk loud, snap gum, grunt, hock their throat out of habit, and talk to themselves. Yes, I have ALL of these parasites at my office. We even had a laughing hyena, but she moved to another floor and was later fired. Boy, was that embarressing when on the phone with customers! I bought ear plugs and a walkman radio to block it out. Some days, I want to put an anonymous pack of cough drops on their desk as a hint. One has to be considerate of those around them when working in a cubicle environment. Others don’t care to hear your bodily noises. Any ideas out there for coping with this?