PA and Secretary Community - Deskdemon.com

I was reading back through the archives (it's a REALLY slow day here).  I thought, what a great topic!  A lot of new members have joined since that post, so let's ask...what's YOUR pet peeve?



I have a few:



People who can't bother to put things they take out of the files back into the filing bins to be filed.  They stick them loose in the file.  A lot of times, when I'm filing, I wind up filing these loose things in proper date order!  I love that the admin (me) gets the blame for not doing her job (this actually happened!  I was blamed for those loose faxes/memos/whatever!)-not these highly-paid engineers who can't be bothered to put a piece of paper in a filing bin!!!



People who assume the receptionist knows every project being worked on and the whereabouts of everyone at all times-when the truth is we know very little!  People got annoyed at me when I put them on hold because they called about a project and wanted a ton of information-but they didn't know who was working on it!  People who yelled at me because I couldn't locate someone-while it turned out they were out of the office, didn't sign out, and didn't tell anyone where they were going.  Don't take your frustration out on ME!!  Also, people who start shooting off long, detailed messages and expect me to write them down for them.  I just transfer them to voice mail.  There's 80 or so people in our office...that's why we have voice mail!



AAAAAAARRRGGHHHHH.    

My personal favourite:



People who leave you a message and then shoot off their phone number so fast that it's a blur.  Sometimes I have to replay the message 3-4 times to figure out what they are saying.  Yes, I know you know your phone number now say it slowly so I can find out what it is!

Office Politics.  Hands down.  How can you expect a company to succeed when every department is working against the others and stabbing them in the back?  It's called

C O O P E R A T I O N

and it's the lack of this that is one of the bigger reasons I'm leaving this company!

My biggest office pet peeve is when people call in to talk to someone and the someone is on the phone.  Then they ask me "how long is he/she going to be on the phone or who are they talking to?"  Am I Miss Cleo and is it any of their business??  Hello?!



OfficeDuchess in VA



 

One of my biggest pet peeves is people waiting to the last minute to get things done.  I know other people are buisy but ya know, take some time to at least either let that somebody know there is going to be a last minute and give enough time to get a job done and done right, thank you.



Other than that, the common curtosey of what Lioness was saying about putting things back where they came from.  If you use something that isn't yours return it.



Chris68

 

Oh, officeduchess, don't ya just love it - when they ask how long they're going to be!!  Wait, while I get out my crystal ball.



One of my pet peeves are bossies (or anyone, for that matter) who insist on talking to you WHILE YOU ARE SPEAKING TO SOMEONE ELSE ON THE PHONE!!!!  I know I have two ears, but unfortunately I can only listen and comprehend one person at a time.

Hmmm, what bugs me today?  OK, let's see.  Telling the same people the same thing over and over again.



Repetition.  That bothers me.



Redundancy. Yeah, that's annoying.



Ha!  No really, I can't stand the helpless:  make my copies, file my papers, make my coffee, give me CPR, I'm having a heart attack...it never ends!



Oh, and people who refuse to work, no matter how many times you ask.  We had an employee here who would sit around and read the newspaper or novels or magazines instead of the vice president's filing.  She would screw things up, was always late or didn't bother to show up at all, sometimes, with lame excuses.  After 8 months, my boss finally got rid of her.  Hopefully, we'll get a team player who will pitch in.



Peevin' fiercely in the city - Yank

I can't stand stupid people!  Now I know some of you are thinking that there aren't really stupid people out there and we should be nicer to them but sometimes it's just ridiculous the lack of common sense people have.



I had one issue today where our Special Services Travel desk (that's used for the high-level execs) had a message on it that it was closed.  So everyone's calling me to find out what's going on and the on travel agent calls me and was like 'I've been here.  In fact the phone hasn't rung once in the past two days.'  Umm hellooooooo...anyone there???  Don't you think you should check on that since it's just a tad unusual?  



Julie

Definitely, Spitfire, you've got one there.  My boss also talks to me when I'm on the phone, and it drives me NUTS!  However, that's not my ultimate peeve, because we've got some real special cases around here.



How about this one?  I walked in at around 9:30 a few weeks ago.  A co-worker walked up to me and said, "Oh my god, we've been waiting for you.  There's a weird smell in the kitchen."  What am I, the smell police? A truffle pig?  I have a special sense that the rest of them don't have?  Able to find weird smells in a single bound?   It turned out to be something icky in the garbage...what a shocker!



Fast forward to last Tuesday...had the day off on Monday, walk in in the morning.  A different co-worker - "We need a plumber, the urinal in the men's room blew up."  I ask when.........YESTERDAY MORNING is the answer.  They just taped some paper over it and waited for me.  It's so sad when they can't even go pee without you.



AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!



These people are helpless.  And lazy.  Thanks for the topic, Lioness.  I feel better already!

MY biggest pet peeve is that nasty phrase...



But we've always done it that way...



I DON'T CARE that you have always done it that way. Why did you choose to do it that way? Have you evaluated the circumstances to see if it warrants changing / streamlining?



I read a great quote this morning:



"If you find a good solution and become attached to it, the solution may become your next problem."

--Robert Anthony

 

Do I have to choose just one?  There are just far too many...actually one for just about everyone you work with!  But if I have to name just one, it would be the dreaded:



The (name the piece of office equipment of your choice) isn't working, will you fix it? (Usually it's followed by the "compliment", I know you know how!) Now, I know I'm damned talented, but I am NOT a technician!  I call for service...but did you ever notice they NEVER tell you what's actually wrong, just that it isn't working?  (Hum, did we turn it on? No? Well, then I guess that does make me a technician!)



Along with being the office psychic and knowing where everyone is, what they're doing, and when they'll be done, this is the thing that gripes me most!  



Daisy (I'm busier than the Maytag repair man!)

How about when bossie says "I want a mailing to go out by April 5.  I'll write the letter for you to type, DEC will write a description of our new service, you prepare the mailing list and get it all together."  Today is April 17, the mailing list is complete, the description was given to me today ....... still no letter.

Since we are on pet peeves, I just received this list of comeback we WISH we could say when these peeves happen (it probably should go on the humor site, but it does fit here).



 THINGS YOU'D LOVE TO SAY AT WORK, BUT CAN'T!

>

> 1. I can see your point, but I still think you're full of @#%$.

> 2. I don't know what your problem is, but I'll bet it's hard to pronounce.

> 3. How about never? Is never good for you?

> 4. I see you've set aside this special time to humiliate yourself in

> public.

> 5. I'm really easy to get along with once you people learn to worship me.

> 6. I'll try being nicer if you'll try being smarter.

> 7. I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message...

> 8. I don't work here. I'm a consultant.

> 9. It sounds like English, but I can't understand a word you're saying.

> 10. Ahhh...I see the @#%$-up fairy has visited us again...

> 11. I like you. You remind me of when I was young and stupid.

> 12. You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.

> 13. I have plenty of talent and vision. I just don't give a damn.

> 14. I'm already visualising the duct tape over your mouth.

> 15. I will always cherish the initial misconceptions I had about you.

> 16. Thank you. We're all refreshed and challenged by your unique point of

> view.

> 17. The fact that no one understands you doesn't mean you're an artist.

> 18. Any connection between your reality and mine is purely coincidental.

> 19. What am I? Flypaper for freaks!?

> 20. I'm not being rude. You're just insignificant.

> 21. It's a thankless job, but I've got a lot of Karma to burn off.

> 22. Yes, I am an agent of Satan, but my duties are largely ceremonial.

> 23. And your cry-baby whiny-assed opinion would be...?

> 24. Do I look like a people person?

> 25. This isn't an office. It's Hell with fluorescent lighting.

> 26. I started out with nothing & still have most of it left.

> 27. Sarcasm is just one more service we offer.

> 28. If I throw a stick, will you leave?

> 29. Errors have been made. Others will be blamed.

> 30. Whatever kind of look you were going for, you missed.

> 31. I'm trying to imagine you with a personality.

> 32. A cubicle is just a padded cell without a door.

> 33. Can I trade this job for what's behind door #1?

> 34. Too many freaks, not enough circuses.

> 35. Nice perfume. Must you marinate in it?

> 36. Chaos, panic, & disorder - my work here is done.

> 37. How do I set a laser printer to stun?

> 38. I thought I wanted a career, turns out I just wanted paychecks



Enjoy!!

 

Almost had an accident myself when I read about not being able to pee without you.  OMG!  



I HATE the talking-to-you-while-you're-on-the-phone-thing.  It's just as rude an interruption as if the person was standing at your desk instead of being on the phone.



I have a small desk area for a lot of paperwork, and I work very hard at keeping it organized.  I have an In-basket CLEARLY LABELED on my desk (And no, it's not a mess and not piled high.  I deal with stuff and get it out of there promptly).  So where do people put things when I'm not at my desk?  On top of my keyboard, on my chair, on top of the monitor, stuck under the phone, just tossed on the desk on top of whatever I'm working on, ANYWHERE but in the basket!



And where have all my pens gone again?  Is someone eating them around here?

I absolutely hate it when they use my chair instead of my in box!! And I hate it when they try to talk to you when you are on the phone, or better yet, stand there and wait impatiently for you to get off the phone, tapping whatever and then.. it's no emergency, they just want you to do something that they could put in your inbox?????



Go figure..

How about people trying to use your desk as a temporary storage centre or as a place to work, while you are sitting right there, trying to get your own work done.

It happened yesterday, when I was on an important call, I needed to use my computer and deal with some papers at the same time, and two people decided that this would be a great time to invade my space.  One wanted to get archived info from the shelf above me (you have to stand on my desk to get to it).  Another was prepping to photocopy and was dumping everything they had on my desk.  Both of these could have waited - but no, they wanted to do this right then.



AAARRRGGGHHHH!!!!!!

I do the travel/expense reports for our department.  I love it when they forget (read "lose") a receipt and expect to get it reimbursed anyway.  And then expect ME to argue with the accounting department!  A receipt for a cab is one thing but in one case it's a $235 lunch!  Our accounting department is NOT going to cut a check for $235 without a receipt, period.



Oh, and how about the one who comes to you with, "I want to fly from Philly to Rochester, NY tomorrow leaving at 7:30 in the morning and coming back around 6:00 in the evening.  And see if you can get it for under $200."  Or, "Find me a hotel in downtown Boston for this Friday and Saturday night for under a hundred bucks."



These both actually happened to me.  The $235 lunch is STILL an issue!

My greatest pet peeve is when I go to make copies and the machine is not cleared from the previous user or better yet, there is not one single sheet of paper in it.  So annoying.  The other annoying thing is when messages are left on the voice mail and the speaker spoke so fast or in such a low voice that the message is difficult to undertand. It gets me so aggravated.

What's the first thing you do when you walk into your office?  I sit down to check messages, drink my tea and turn on the phone.  I've sat on some really important stuff first thing in the morning that way, and then they wonder why the contract (or whatever it is) is ripped, wrinkled and generally "butt damaged".



Final peeve for the day....I hate when people don't let you finish speaking and then just start booming in with their ill-formed opinion based on half of what you were TRYING to say in the first place. Oh, and customer service reps who hang up on you when they can't solve your problem and then you can never find them again.  Oh, and people who don't replace the paper towels or soap in the bathroom (I mean, really, there are six of us here, ladies, obviously someone is the culprit).  And people who think it's my job to stay late on Fridays and do their job for them while they go to a concert.........



AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH.....runs screaming out the door.....



Have a great day, everyone!

   

I HATE it when you ask a caller for their telephone number when taking a message and they say: "Oh, he has it", as though my boss keeps ever scrap of paper he ever wrote something on right in front of him, and he really wants to look up your number when he has a hundred other things to do.



And people who don't THINK and try and solve a problem just dump it on you expecting you to know.



 

Just for today, here's my favorite - my boss will make a decision that something needs to be done (usually an action I am required to take) and then just assume that our psychic bond transfers the information to my brain directly--without him ever TELLING me!  The most recent example was setting up work space in another building.  The team, working on a temporary project, will need phones, furniture, printers, etc., etc. and he wanted this yesterday.  Guess when he told me?  You got it!  YESTERDAY at 1:00!!!  He has known this for almost 3 weeks and never a peep from him!  AAAAAGGGHH!  Here's another - needy, selfish, inconsiderate people who think that I exist to serve them, whether or not they even work in the same department!

I agree with you, Bethalize.  In line with that, I hate it when callers won't tell you why they are calling.  These same people would probably throw a fit if their secretary gave them an incomplete message, and yet they expect me to do that to my boss!!!

The last-minute thing tops the list for me, too...especially when I've been twiddling my thumbs for the better part of the week, waiting for work. Then they pile it all on at once on Thursday or Friday and of course everyone expects that I can get it done right away because "gee, you weren't busy yesterday..." They never seem to realize that because everyone else procrastinated too, now they've got 3 people in front of them who also need their stuff ASAP!



My other peeve is when people assume that because one of the other admins knows all about X (this copy job, the courier's schedule today, etc.) I must know all about it too. Oh really? I'm not psychic!  And we don't have time to brief each other on every little thing that's going on. It's even worse when the person who DOES have the details is out of the office - try getting them to wait until that person comes back in!  

When I'm sitting at my desk with the Tupperware FULL of spaghetti, the fork IN my mouth and someone walks over with work for me to do.  Some say, "sorry, can you call me when you're off lunch?" This is nod or smile at and agree to.  If that happens, I will even finish up early to help out.  But my favorites are those that stand there and wait for me to notice them or ask me flat out to do this, "while you're wating?"  "No.  I don't get paid for my lunch hour, I come in at least half an hour early a day, you can catch me later."  "But I need it now."  "Sucks to be you, huh?" Yes, I said that to a manager.



If I'm on the phone, I ignore the person.  My fiance does that and I ignore him, too.  I've learned to ignore most things around here.  About the broken office machine stuff, I had one male (not a real man in the classic sense of the word) came to me, poked his head in my cubicle and quickly state, "small copier's broken," then ran away.  I thought he broke it.  OK, things happen.  IT NEEDED TONER!  TONER IS KEPT IN THE CABINET DIRECTLY UNDER THE COPIER LABELED "TONER"!  That feels better.

Here's one that floored me that happened while I was at the front desk.  A client came in to pick up something, then asked me if I could copy it for him!  Hello...who's going to answer the bazillion calls that come in while I'm making copies for you?  So, I told him where the copier was, he was welcome to use it-and he had one of the OTHER admins copy it for him.  I don't see why he couldn't copy it himself...or wait until he got back to his office...I had to bite my lip to keep my mouth from falling open after this request!  Yes, another helpless type, and I wonder what his admin (if he has one) goes through daily!

1. Yes, Officeduchess, I hate it when people ask, "How will Mr. Smith be on the phone?" As much as I wish I were, I am not psychic!



2. Your procrastination does not make it my emergency!



3. Stupid people. "Can you help me with my Illinois paperwork?" My response, "No, this is the State of Iowa. You'll need to hire someone who is familiar with Illinois laws or call the Illinois State Department" Her response, "Oh, then can I just turn in my completed Illinois paperwork here and pay it here?" My response, "No, this is the State of Iowa (said slowly with emphasis because she apparently did get it the first time). You'll need to mail it to Illinois" I wanted to say, "No, you moron! You don't pay for something at McDonald's that you ate at Burger King, do you????



4. Lazy people. Just today, for example, I gave a customer an instruction booklet which has forms attached inside it that the customer can fill in, tear out and mail back to us. This lazy guy asks, "Do you have any loose forms?" My reply, "You can't just tear out the forms already in there?" His reply, "No, I like loose forms." In hind site, I should have asked him for the book back, torn the forms out myself and handed them back to him with a now-that-wasn't-so-hard-was-it smile. But I didn't. I gave him a loose form just to get him to go away.



Ugggh!!!

Wait I have another one!  Someone gives you a job to do, then asks you every 15 minutes if you have gotten the work done.

Another one is when I have to cover phones & take a later lunch, sometimes people think my lunch is still over at 1, so they start asking me to do stuff, even when it's obvious I'm eating lunch or my phone has an "at lunch" message on it.



And then there are the "vague instructions." Got one of those this morning--I couldn't figure out WHAT the heck the person who asked wanted (I honestly don't think he knew, either), and the more questions I tried to ask, the more confusing it got. So I finally decided I needed to ask someone else what was going on, except the person I needed didn't come back in until it was too late. arrgh!  

One of my top pet peeves is the BLAME GAME.  I hate being blamed.  I also loathe watching people wiggle and squirm as they avoid the simple words "I'm sorry".  

And another one ........... when you are the phone with Client A rescheduling an appointment and bossie makes you put Client A on hold(strict no-no in our office)because she thinks that you are talking to Client B and you are explaining the situation "all wrong"  The reason for this confusion?  We were discussing Client B when the phone rang.  Ummmmm ....... I haven't even called Client B yet, how could they be calling back already???

Seeing the responses has made me dust off my "Rules for Work" and post it in Humor Zone...



but my pet peeve, that will iritate me to no end:



Bring me "busy work", ask me to do it for them because they're busy doing something else, then they go back and talk on the phone (personal call, unrelated to work in any way, not even an emergency call home or to remind hubby/son/SO to pick up milk).  Now I know the reason they brought that to me was because I was actually taking my 15 minutes break, the first time in 3 days, and therefore must not have anything better to do than to fax/copy/shred/type this insignificant thing.



2nd worst:  Working with folks who are "so busy", they have "so much to do" and yet they spend 40% of their day gossiping, talking on phone, staring into space, etc.  In our office we have so many of us on top of each other in cubicles that if one person is on the phone, most everyone can hear it, so when one person is unproductive it spreads like wild-fire.  My 2 counterparts are the worst at it too.  Even worse - being government employees they're almost impossible to get rid of!



Of course there are others, most of which have been addressed here, but those are my worst two.

Gertilda, I am right there with you on office politics!!

I thought it was ADULTS that worked in offices most of the times....I have found too many CHILDREN playing adult or kingpin.  And the childish games they play sometimes...really!!  GROW UP.

And right along with the politics, and childishness is the petty, tattletales of every office.

Why can't they all be wonderful people like us?!?!?!?!

Why do they all spend so much energy making life difficult for themselves and everyone around?  Life is too short for that....we have to enjoy what we do and who we work with and use that word COOPERATION and by doing so we will all have a better world to live in.