Phrases That Annoy Coworkers
Remember when you were in junior high how you wanted to make sure every conversation included the latest “cool” phrase? It probably didn’t work then, and it certainly doesn’t fly in the workplace today.
Using trite words and phrases like “realigning,” “circle back,” and “downsizing” will elicit eyerolls from coworkers. “Quiet quitting” is likewise over.
But the new worst hated phrase is “We’re building a plane as we fly it,” closely followed by “Let’s double click on that.” A Glassdoor survey found that the offending sentences have joined the pantheon of overdone and cringeworthy work clauses that professionals loathe.
How to avoid the inevitable eyerolls and disrespect? Say what you mean in plain English. Using the newest buzzword will only make your coworkers think you’re insincere.
Source: Mattson, J. (2024, September 16). Employees voted on the worst workplace jargon Here’s the number-one phrase that annoys your coworkers. FastCompany. https.www.fastcompany.com
Is the End of Hybrid Work Here?
Although 81 percent of companies plan no changes to policies affecting location flexibility in 2024, the harbingers of change are clear. The RTO (return to office) movement is alive and well, with huge companies like Disney and Amazon leading the pack.
Claiming, with some studies providing justification, that teams work better and more efficiently when physically together, many U.S. firms are anxious to get workers back into their office chairs and out of their PJ pants.
The warning signs appeared earlier this year with Amazon pounding the drums of change when it announced it wanted employees back in the office starting in January “the way we were before the onset of COVID.”
Employees were up in arms, but Amazon has threatened termination if corporate staff does not concede, giving CEOs in other companies the support they had been waiting for to end working from home.
Given the tight job market, experts are forecasting major changes in the flexible work schedules that began during the pandemic.
Source: Fuhrmans, V. (2024, September 20). The work from home free-for-all is coming to an end. The Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com
Impostor Syndrome—Or Do You Just Suck?
Everyone has self-doubt sometimes, but many people are crippled by the nagging feeling that they are just not good enough at work, that they “suck.” Such a feeling is actually a genuine psychological phenomenon labeled impostor syndrome.
However, a former HR executive at Microsoft offers a checklist to help workers judge whether they genuinely have the capability of doing the job they have.
Listen to what colleagues and the boss tell you. Examine formal performance reviews for objective statements about your skill levels, collaboration abilities, and results. Look for insincerities.
Also listen to less formal oral feedback, sometimes the best measure of how others see your performance. Most positive unsolicited comments come from the heart.
Assess your place in meetings. Meetings are familiar opportunities for many employees to feel like impostors. To determine if you suffer from this affliction, take a tally of meeting participants. If you’ve called the meeting or participate because you have expertise in the topic, you likely belong in the room.
People who have little or nothing to offer and participate for ancillary reasons have more reason to worry about being impostors than you do.
Analyze your results. Examine your accomplishments objectively and compare them to people doing similar things in other firms. Chances are you are a harsher critic of yourself than anyone else.
Source: Williams, C. (2024, September 16). Ex-Microsoft VP of HR: How to tell whether you have imposter syndrome or just suck at your job. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com