Hi lynnk - good to hear from you!!!!  I was surprised to see my posting back again but was very interested in your reply.  Even though I have moved jobs since I initially posted my question, it is still relevant with my new company so thanks for the tips.

Best wishes and thanks again

Frustrating times when trying to find a suitable date for a meeting with several people.

I send email to 8 people with suggested dates on which to hold a meeting asking if they can get back to me with their availability. A simple request which usually works well.  However, on at least three occasions this week, rather than reply to me only as I am the one organising the meeting, they reply ‘to all’. 

This then prompts ‘A’ who cannot do one of the days that ‘B’ can do to send another reply ‘to all’ saying ‘but I cannot do that day so we can’t hold it on that day’. ‘B’ then replies ‘to all’ but suggests another day and so on and so on........... . A complete muddle as they are now talking amongst themselves and seem to be ignoring me.

Why cannot they just reply to me, I collate the dates they can do/can’t do, and send another message out with the chosen date.

Guess I will have to ask them to reply only to me and not ‘to all’.  If I was sent such an email, I would only reply to the person who sent it, never to all.

Fantastic bit of thinking there countrigal !!!

I wonder if this umbrella drew in some comments as it is not the norm to see one in the office !!

I now have a small desk fan and it certainly helps me feel a lot cooler.  Have had no negative comments from anyone so obviously my little flow of cool air does not make them feel cold.  If I see someone sitting there with a bobble hat and scarf on then maybe it does but they don't want to complain 

Guess it is all about trying to find a happy medium whatever the problem is.  Me with my fan and countrigal with her umbrella.

Coming into this a bit late but love Katie G's response.

Several times a day we have these calls and they usually ask for the boss  by first name as if they are a long lost friend.  When you ask what it is in connection with they start their sales talk about how they recently spoke to them and are now just doing a follow up call.  But by this time you are in a conversation with them, of sorts, so quite difficult to get them off the phone.

I just love Katie G's direct 'no'.  Well, after all, they asked if they can speak to 'a.n other' and you have simply said 'no' and then wait for their response, you have answered their question. I will put this into practice next time it happens.

Yes, I know they are only doing their job but for the few that come across as agressive in their sales pitch, they deserve no less.  Others i may be kinder to.  It is so obvious that some of them are following a script and obviously the response of 'no' is not on there.

If they were up front at the start and perhaps say something along the lines of 'i am doing a survey.......' or similar, I may have more sympathy with but when they treat you as if you are daft and think they can trick you into you putting their call through to the boss, that is most annoying.

Thanks Jess,
No air conditioning I am afraid.  Desk fan is the way forward I think - will put in an order for one today. Simple idea, why did I not think of that.....

Hope all going well for you in your new venture!
Best wishes

Has anyone else come across this poblem and if so, how did you get around it please?

I work in an office of about 20 people. Some have their own offices off the main one but most of us sit in the open plan office.  It gets so hot with all the computers on and the central heating of course that it feels quite uncomfortable.  There are also a few people who have coughs and colds so I am sure that germs are multiplying fast.  There are a few windows but if you ask if you can open one even a tiny bit to let a bit of fresh air in, you are told no as its too cold outside and we are 'freezing'.

How do we get a happy medium? Thanks in advance.

Congratulations Jess - you are so brave !!  Wishing you every bit of luck with this new stage of your career.
Hope to see your wit still here on DD once you have settled in.

For the record, I too trust my boss and my company is very ethical and honest. I am actually glad to be working for such a company but in past companies, some people thought they could get away with things that were not really totally honest but guess all companies have this, it is just how they deal with such situations that matter.

Does the deafening sound of silence and nobody posting on this topic, make you think that nobody is willing to put in print what we feel in case we are identified?

This would be a great topic at a get together meeting to vent/let off steam - which is probably done in every day in offices all over but for obvious reasons, needs to be done in private.

Just my thoughts.

Becky - sorry you are going through this.  But it will end.  For 12 months a few years ago I hated the job I was in but was unable to find another.  I used to get so stressed.  I would park outside where I worked in the car park and just sit there, steeling myself to go in.  Everything was wrong about this job but it dragged on.  But, and it took me a long time, I chipped away at finding something else, I joined agencies, looked at job ads in papers, asked  everyone I knew to keep an eye out for jobs for me, i sent off my CV with covering letter to companies I wanted to work for but who were not advertising. 

I think that even tho I knew I was unhappy at work, like you, I knew nothing would change unless I made it happen. And I did feel better knowing that I was being active in trying to make it happen.  This activity also kept my mind focussed as I did not want to get so down and depressed that I was missing opportunities.

Is there any chance for working in other departments that might be better than where you are? Is there any projects that you could volunteer to take on to make the daily grind a bit more bearable?

I was eventually successful in securing another position via an agency but if that had not come up, I was talking to agancies about long term temp bookings which I would have moved into if other permanent did not come up.

You must stay positive and upbeat even if you have to pretend to be so when the  interviews do come in, you are ready and shine.
Good luck - keep on plugging away.  When you do finally find a job where you are happy, you will look back on this and realise it may have taught you something. 

Our office has been without phones for a day now - no incoming nor outgoing calls possible on the landlines.  Watch how everyone (substitute this for boss people) panic.  Here they are with their laptops, blackberries, mobiles and yet they act as if their right arm has been cut off.  Several of them sat for ages ringing their contacts on their mobiles telling them that their mobile was the only way to contact them - so anyone else trying to get through, couldn't. Quite amusing really, for a Friday 

I think it is because what is always there is suddenly not and in their mind, they are missing out.

I on the other hand have enjoyed a quiet(ish) day because of this.

In the past only when looking for a new job but from now on, will try to look at on a regular basis or, if not that, then start a page in my notebook headed "things I must put on CV to keep it up to date".

I can see the benefits of revisiting it regularly especially if you see something you want to apply for out of the blue, you have it all ready.  Things happen that you easily forget but perhaps should be included.

Good thread.

Many, many thanks Marie.  I have printed your posting and will study when I have time with no interruptions.  I will update as I go along but this certainly starts me off. Thanks again 

Re-visiting this thread as after reading what maria had achieved, I said it made me want to shake myself up and get moving on my goals for the future.

However, having sat down with a pen and paper ready to do a list, I found myself with a mind block.  I know I want to achieve more than I have so far at work, would like to stress that I like my job, but want to improve in the hope that in the future, I would be able to, for example, earn more, when the time comes to move on.

There is also things I want to improve in my life outside work, make more time to meet up with friends, for example.

Can anyone advise how to expand on goals?  To say the two examples above make sense but they are quite broad, I guess I need to break them down into small steps but am struggling as to how.  I think I find it quite daunting as time is short for me to not only plan but also to carry out my plans. Like most people I work all day and am often so tired when I get home, to use my brain even more seems impossible. 

Any help you can give would be most welcome. Thanks in advance.

All the bosses have blackberries and laptops and the latest gadgets but still are at times impossible to get hold of out of the office 

In the actual office we have a fax machine which is very rarely used.  In fact, the only time it is used is when solicitors want to send something over - they seem not to like using email that much.  They also like us to fax documents to them.  In this day and age I find this strange but wonder if there is a reason for it?  They do at times send things on email but this is usually their 2nd choice.