top 10 office annoyances

Top 10 Office Annoyances

According to commercial property experts, LondonOffices.com, these are the top 10 office annoyances.

1. Unattractive Smells

   Be considerate when packing your lunch or snacks. No one wants to be walking through an office that reeks of everyone’s leftovers. According to a study by CV-Library, 36.8% of office workers find eating smelly food an offense. So, if you’ve got some leftover haddock – maybe think twice before putting it in the office microwave. Whilst on the topic of smells, the LondonOffice’s team also suggest that co-workers with poor hygiene are also a common office gripe. Therefore, be mindful about how you present yourself at work.

2. Dirty Desks

   Are you one of those people that leaves their desk covered in a huge pile of unorganized papers and litter? Well, tidy up. The researchers found that this may be distracting your colleagues.

3. Talking Too Much

   Sometimes you just need a dose of chatter or banter to usher the day by. But, that person who starts using your ear daily to vent or give you snippets of irrelevant information can be really irritating.

4. Not Making the Tea

   A recent survey of British workers revealed that the average worker spends 109.6 hours per year making tea. With tea an intrinsic part of British office life, making yourself a cuppa without offering to get others one can be perceived as rude – especially if you’re quick to accept an offer when someone else is making one.

5. Slack Timekeeping

   While bad timekeeping now and then can be excused - it’s part of life - it can become a real irritation and breed resentment.

6. Coughing and Sneezing

   While there is a taboo around taking time off for a common cold, co-workers would actually prefer if you stayed at home when you're ill. Germs spread like wildfire in an office space, so stay in bed and recover.

7. Personal Phone Calls

   Using your mobile for personal calls at your desk or leaving your phone on sound when the WhatsApp group is popping off is distracting. Make sure you keep it on silent and refrain from having personal chats at the desk.

8. Breaking Boundaries

   Remembering to respect your colleagues’ boundaries – both physical and conversational – is essential. Making inappropriate jokes, advances, or not respecting someone’s personal space are rules that apply both in and outside the workplace. Basically, don’t forget to be a decent person.

9. Being Distracting

   Exuberant colleagues can bring excitement to an office, but sometimes, they can distract you from your work. Not everyone wants to hear their opinions on the latest Netflix documentary at 10 in the morning. Remember to talk quietly and keep annoying habits such as tapping on the desk or fidgeting to a minimum.

10. Lunch Thieves

    Stealing someone’s lunch is possibly the worst crime you can commit in an office. Just don’t do it. Unless your office has plenty of food-related perks, remember that the workplace fridge is not a free-for-all.

Source: Executive Grapevine, LondonOffices.com