Find work-places,generally,very very difficult

caille

Does anyone else feel like myself, that they just find work places generally an absolute nightmare to navigate and survive in? I have always worked in a number of different kinds of offices and I can honestly say that work itself has never been an issue, it has always been the office politics going on around me. Even though I am older and wiser now, I am a sensitive soul and still find myself drained and wrung out after most days.

The only way I can survive these days is that I look at work as like being in prison, except that I get released in the evenings and time off (at weekends and leave) for good behaviour.

I know I am lucky to be working and earning reasonable money, I just wish to God that I could work from home (and I am not lazy), I truly find work places to be really awful places. And the thoughts of twenty more years of this frightens me.

Just wondering if anyone has any advice or feels the same?

Rackstar

That's no way to spend your working week. It must be like hell on earth.

I have a stressful job but I go in positive, laugh and joke in the office and get on with my work.

Dial Hard

Honestly, no. I spent my entire career up til May of this year in large, generally multi-national companies and really loved the dynamic in the office, for the most part.

In my current role I work from home pretty much all the time and while it has its advantages, I really do miss the offoce atmosphere quite a bit.

December2012

Can you look at a different type of work, maybe something outdoors?

LegacyUser

Oh my god I thought it was just me.
I don't find them quite so difficult in the way you say, but I absolutely hate being stuck in a building sitting in front of a computer screen all day long.I knew from a young age that wasn't where I wanted to be, but unfortunately due to the recession, it's where I've ended up.I hate it.I don't know if prison is quite the word, but I certainly feel trapped all day....it's 8 hours that I have to endure, watching minutes pass by before can get the hell out of there and get on with my life at evenings and weekends.I loathe all the corporate rubbish...the politics, the meetings, the buzzwords....I just want to do a job and be left in peace.It feels so unnatural and awful to me and like you, I can't help thinking I've got 30 something years of this crap left in front of me.
I'm afraid I have no solution for you but it's good to know that I'm not entirely alone in feeling this way either.

Mrs OBumble

How do you find non-work relationships? Have you ever talked to your GP about this? Maybe you need to consider some personal counselling.

robarmstrong

caille wrote: »

Does anyone else feel like myself, that they just find work places generally an absolute nightmare to navigate and survive in? I have always worked in a number of different kinds of offices and I can honestly say that work itself has never been an issue, it has always been the office politics going on around me. Even though I am older and wiser now, I am a sensitive soul and still find myself drained and wrung out after most days.

The only way I can survive these days is that I look at work as like being in prison, except that I get released in the evenings and time off (at weekends and leave) for good behaviour.

I know I am lucky to be working and earning reasonable money, I just wish to God that I could work from home (and I am not lazy), I truly find work places to be really awful places. And the thoughts of twenty more years of this frightens me.

Just wondering if anyone has any advice or feels the same?

I have 40 odd more years of it!!

In all seriousness though, is it honestly that bad? I mean I fit in grand wherever I go, you can avoid office politics and still have a good working atmosphere? In my previous job there was some stupidly childish office politics, but rather than take sides, I stayed out of it and made friends on both sides who understood my reasoning - I just wanted to come in, do my job and improve each day.

I still keep in touch with these people and would consider them close friends even though I've left the company!

intheclouds

Yes, I know what you mean.

I largely feel the same, although generally I am very much a people person and I mix very well with all levels of work colleague.

But the drudgery, the politics, the buzz words, the lick arsey behaviour of some, it all just seems fake and pointless to me.

Im in my 40s now and I have spent my entire career so far making grey haired old men richer. I just do it for the money (which is good) but I derive no joy from the job itself (any job Ive ever done I felt the same about it, its clock watching for me).

Sunny Dayz

I wouldn't find office work places as being difficult, unless maybe if I was being bullied or something. I think work is much like school when you were younger, didn't particularly "like" going there, but at the same time didn't really mind it and made the most of the break time and little chats etc.


The way I see it is you have to spend approx. 35 hours in there a week so you really should try to make it as bearable / enjoyable for yourself as possible. At the end of the day, it's your work space too and you should be able to have reasonable peace and enjoyment in there.

caille

Hi, OP here, thanks for the replies so far and good to see that I am not alone in this thinking. My relationships outside of work are very good, in fact, some of my friends are colleagues from previous jobs, if that says something(I'm also happily married and have good family and in laws). Like I already said, it's not work itself is the issue, I really like what I do in itself, always have and I have had a lot of variety.

Its management and work colleagues and all the bloody rows, back stabbing, dumping work on other people etc that are the issues for me, plus the feeling the being constantly watched and micro managed.

I am well able now to prevent either being dumped on or bullied, so nothing like that is going on. It is just that I hate, hate, hate, hate the office environment and its only in the last few years, for me, it is comparable to being in prison. I do have chats and a laugh where I am, I get on with management and some days are ok, just they are very few and far between and most days are just truly awful.

Bandana boy

Sounds like you need a differnt job , either in a company with a different culture or more likely in a different field.

I would have a long hard think about what you require from work and see if something ticks more of the boxes than your current job , maybe look at going self employed ?

caille

Hi OP again, and thanks again for further replies. I had a good long think the last week or so and I don't want to say what sector I work in but Ive realised that all the offices Ive worked in, since joining this sector, have been horrendous. I was happier in jobs prior to joining and I had forgotten how politics free they were.

I am not writing myself off but I am not exactly at an age where I can just up and leave, have a hefty mortgage and other commitments. Even today, I really took stock and had enjoyed the work all day, had some nice chats with colleagues I work with and get on great with. Then a disagreement broke out at the other end of the room (completely different work area, nothing to do with them except for breaks) and that tension spread up to my area and various other people got involved etc.. It is just ridiculous, I had originally loved working in a huge open plan area but now I realise that there are just too many personalities where I am to contend with.

Moving to another office or work area has become extremely difficult (in comparison to a few years ago), which only adds to the stress.

Thanks though for the replies and it has helped to see I'm not alone with this. I will continue to do 'time' :-)

MDwyer

would moving to smaller office enviroment help at all?

irishguy1983

I am kind of like that!

I don't really enjoy working with others - always politics/fighting going on and being a sensitive type I find it difficult to cope.

I worked on a project completely on my own for 3 months during the summer - my boss said he never saw me so engaged with work!

Maybe you are in the wrong career also? I think that might be part of my issue too - then again I loved the project I worked on during the year - no team meetings, no daily catch ups, no listening to people I didn't want to listen too, no worrying about other people not pulling their weight. Everything was on me/the pressure was high and I actually thrived just being on my own!

caille

Hi, OP again, no chance of moving to a smaller office any time soon, there is a sort of a 'stop' on transfers going on right now, plus I am not long enough where I am to ask for one based on length of time there. My work is very much team orientated, there are seven of us who all work together and rely very much on each others input to get the work done so I have to be in the office all the time. I would crack up completely if there were issues within my own team but thank God, we all get on brilliant, give or take normal little niggles. Unfortunately, its the other areas that are the problem (and affect break and lunch times as well) so that I feel I don't get a break from friction or tension. Ironically, I am happiest when our unit are busy getting work done and are just talking to each other.

Thanks again, guys, I will figure something out, I do try to keep my head down as much as possible but I am very sensitive to negative energy around me and it really gets to me, I would love to be like others who can completely ignore it and not let it get to them.

irishguy1983

caille wrote: »

Hi, OP again, no chance of moving to a smaller office any time soon, there is a sort of a 'stop' on transfers going on right now, plus I am not long enough where I am to ask for one based on length of time there. My work is very much team orientated, there are seven of us who all work together and rely very much on each others input to get the work done so I have to be in the office all the time. I would crack up completely if there were issues within my own team but thank God, we all get on brilliant, give or take normal little niggles. Unfortunately, its the other areas that are the problem (and affect break and lunch times as well) so that I feel I don't get a break from friction or tension. Ironically, I am happiest when our unit are busy getting work done and are just talking to each other.

Thanks again, guys, I will figure something out, I do try to keep my head down as much as possible but I am very sensitive to negative energy around me and it really gets to me, I would love to be like others who can completely ignore it and not let it get to them.

Are you a sensitive person in general maybe? I only ask because you maybe sound similar. I'm not really sit out myself for office politics and rather than blame others and focus on them I just look at myself really - not saying you are the same but just a thought.

Snoopy1

Im like you. I get a fear everytime i've had time off. I like my work, buts its my colleagues and the politics that annoy me. Take this weekend, one person is not talking to me, because yesterday she asked me to do something, and i didnt know how. So now if she has to talk to me, its to snipe at me, or complain about something i've done, and i've still got a whole weekend of this.

Im just counting down the hours till the weekend is finished.

LadyBetty

I wouldn't suffer with it quite as bad OP but yes at times I find open plan offices can be tough going too. I used to make a point of going for a walk by myself at lunchtime, rain, hail or shine, just to mentally recharge. It helped keep me sane for the afternoon then.

If there was a team lunch or someone's leaving lunch I would feel wound up by 5.30pm having been stuck with colleagues for the whole working day, having had no mental break.

I have been known to lock myself away in the quietest toilet I could find for 10 minutes of peace!!

Sorry to hear you feel like it's doing time in prison. Focus on the positives of your work and the colleagues that you like. Do not give oxygen to the negative thoughts if you can help it.

catbear

I had one job where upon reflection I should have got a sick note for stress leave. It was all politics and it made my workday intolerable. I only stuck with it because I wanted to save as much money as I could to leave.
My next job was bliss.

If I ever find myself in that situation again I'd certainly get a sick note, life's too short for bull****.

dd972

You sound just like me OP, I can't be arsed with offices or call centres anymore and am pursuing Train Driving in the UK, it's done in staged assessments and I'm one-third there, it's a non-starter in Ireland given the minuscule network and mammoth nepotism of Irish Rail. How about exploring some line of work where you can work from home or outdoors with maybe one or two colleagues?, I particularly liked working for a removals company once.

I've christened these people who fit in at the typical workplace ''worko's'', they seem genuinely as happy and relaxed in an office as the average person is when they're sat at home or in a pub or a restaurant.

You're supposed to spend 40+ hours a week with a bunch of strangers and love it and if you don't you get labelled as the oddball. :eek:

Bandana boy

dd972 wrote: »

You sound just like me OP, I can't be arsed with offices or call centres anymore and am pursuing Train Driving in the UK, it's done in staged assessments and I'm one-third there, it's a non-starter in Ireland given the minuscule network and mammoth nepotism of Irish Rail. How about exploring some line of work where you can work from home or outdoors with maybe one or two colleagues?, I particularly liked working for a removals company once.

I've christened these people who fit in at the typical workplace ''worko's'', they seem genuinely as happy and relaxed in an office as the average person is when they're sat at home or in a pub or a restaurant.

You're supposed to spend 40+ hours a week with a bunch of strangers and love it and if you don't you get labelled as the oddball. :eek:

They are not strangers after you have been introduced to them !

catbear

dd972 wrote: »

I've christened these people who fit in at the typical workplace ''worko's'', they seem genuinely as happy and relaxed in an office as the average person is when they're sat at home or in a pub or a restaurant.

You're supposed to spend 40+ hours a week with a bunch of strangers and love it and if you don't you get labelled as the oddball. :eek:

I like that. What gets me about those situations is that everyone is supposed to tolerate wind bags. Once had to work beside beside this moaner who just wouldn't shut up. I tried as much as I could to minimalise his company but in the end I cracked and went to management to ask to be moved. Rather than help they told me that the windbag had problems at home and we had to tolerate him!
When I told them my work was starting to suffer then they had a chat with him and eventually I got away from the life sucker.
Hell is other people.