I work with 7 guys. It's a bit like this:
Except there are not any deer.
We work in a small office with a long double-sided shared desk, which means I have someone on my left, right and center by about 1 - 2 feet. We can hear everything that the other people are saying. In addition to that, we have the TV on all day on CNBC or Bloomberg, plus we have a thing called the Hoot, which is basically like a CB channel where traders and other people can broadcast things and communicate with each other. It gets a bit loud sometimes.
Men, as you may know, are very simple. They basically talk about three things: money, women and food. When they get mad at each other, they lay it all out there. Fortunately, although I am generally pretty passive aggressive, this situation works for me. You just say what you mean and if someone has a problem with it, they say so, and then you get over it. It's much more efficient that the way that women do it.
However, it is funny how although men are not as bad at back stabbing or talking behind other people's backs, they do it from time to time. That is part of the problem of working so closely together every day. You really have to get along pretty well and carry your own weight, or it affects the entire group. There is one guy who is not quite there, as in he does things halfway and does not pull his own weight, and it really changes the feeling in the room.
I hear a lot of things in that room. I hear the F word at least a dozen times a day (and the S word? too many times to count). I hear the guys talk about their dates, how hot the new newscaster is on CNBC, or how their wife leaves the peanut butter knife out on the counter. They joke around with each other if one of them wears a pink tie or gets a new haircut. They talk about bathroom functions. I hear and know everything about them. And they are like family to me. You know how your brothers always annoyed you but you loved them just the same? That's how it is with these guys. They are my seven annoying, funny, lovable dwarfs. And I am Snow White.
What is your work setting like? Do you work in close quarters with the people you work with? Do you get along with everyone?
Except there are not any deer.
We work in a small office with a long double-sided shared desk, which means I have someone on my left, right and center by about 1 - 2 feet. We can hear everything that the other people are saying. In addition to that, we have the TV on all day on CNBC or Bloomberg, plus we have a thing called the Hoot, which is basically like a CB channel where traders and other people can broadcast things and communicate with each other. It gets a bit loud sometimes.
Men, as you may know, are very simple. They basically talk about three things: money, women and food. When they get mad at each other, they lay it all out there. Fortunately, although I am generally pretty passive aggressive, this situation works for me. You just say what you mean and if someone has a problem with it, they say so, and then you get over it. It's much more efficient that the way that women do it.
However, it is funny how although men are not as bad at back stabbing or talking behind other people's backs, they do it from time to time. That is part of the problem of working so closely together every day. You really have to get along pretty well and carry your own weight, or it affects the entire group. There is one guy who is not quite there, as in he does things halfway and does not pull his own weight, and it really changes the feeling in the room.
I hear a lot of things in that room. I hear the F word at least a dozen times a day (and the S word? too many times to count). I hear the guys talk about their dates, how hot the new newscaster is on CNBC, or how their wife leaves the peanut butter knife out on the counter. They joke around with each other if one of them wears a pink tie or gets a new haircut. They talk about bathroom functions. I hear and know everything about them. And they are like family to me. You know how your brothers always annoyed you but you loved them just the same? That's how it is with these guys. They are my seven annoying, funny, lovable dwarfs. And I am Snow White.
What is your work setting like? Do you work in close quarters with the people you work with? Do you get along with everyone?
Ha!! Sounds like fun and torture at the same time! I had to work in a similar situation as far as sharing a table in a big room but only for 7 months. Most people spent the entire time terrified because we had to share the room with the partners of the firm. It was pretty amusing. Now I am in an office all by myself and it is way too quiet!
ReplyDeleteI am super close to my team. There are five of us and we are all women but we all get along great and we are like a little family. Not to say that they all don't bother me sometimes in some way or another but that's like family too ;)
ReplyDeleteI've actually only ever worked with all women and it's never been a problem for me. I think it's helped that I've worked on two smaller teams in my professional life though.
I work in a similar environment as you do and have for the last 4+ years. It was a little bit of a tough adjustment at first as it was hard to have absolutely no privacy, but I have gotten used to it and can block things out pretty well. I don't mind working with mostly men, but I don't particularly like the people that sit around me now. Like the guy that sits next to me and asks me the dumbest questions like, 'Is Jamaica a country?' (NOT EVEN KIDDING) or asks me endless questions about North Dakota which is a place I feel no ties to any longer. There is no escaping that guy in an open air trading floor environment and that is what I dislike about it at times...
ReplyDeleteWorking with mostly men is interesting, though. We have talked about this already but I still find it surprising how not independent they are. I think it's silly that they seem to need to go to lunch together whereas I have no trouble going to get lunch by myself. They also seem to be fascinated by the fact that I bring my lunch every day and pay so much attention to what I am eating.
All that said, I get along with coworkers, I just don't feel any affinity towards them... but I worked in all-men environments before and developed relationships with the men so I think I am just in a weird spot right now. I joke that I work on the island of misfit toys because the guys on my team all have something strange about them... But they probably think I am equally strange!
I don't know if I could handle that! My department is two guys and two women and that balance works well. Especially since we don't all share an office. We're split across the room and have completely separate responsibilities.
ReplyDeleteOh, yeah. It's four of us in the smallest pharmacy ever (it's actually the smallest in the state, for reals). Like most pharmacies, it's all women - much harder situation. I always try to hire a guy at every pharmacy, but it doesn't always work out that way, meaning we're a room full of estrogen!
ReplyDeleteYep! Software development is totally a male-dominated field and I have a much easier time making friends with women than I do other men. so it's constantly awkward.
ReplyDeleteYour work environment makes me a little envious-- I work with all women! Except for some of the MD's I work with/for, all of the nurses and MA's are women. Heaps of Estrogen which isn't always a good thing!
ReplyDeleteI worked mainly with men, too for many years and really liked it. They DO say what's on their minds and then forget about it... not all touchy-feely 'ask me about my kids and commiserate with me' like women. That sounds mean but unfortunately true in my experience. So, shall we call you Snow White from now on? Love that visual!
ReplyDeletehaha, I like the comparison. My office is setup in my house's guest room, where two cats and two kids try to steal my attention away throughout the day ;) There are a lot of papers on my desk and always a cup of tea ready to be sipped.
ReplyDeleteI work with all women. It sucks sometimes. I say what I mean and what I want done. So there is no confusion. Apparently being direct is "bitchy and mean." Oy.
ReplyDelete