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Cubicle Etiquette?
zrgn asks: "Our team is moving to an open office type environment in a couple of weeks. The problem is that most of them have never worked in that type of setting before and thus may not know the do's and don'ts associated with a cube farm. I have two questions: what types of cubicle etiquette things have Slashdot readers come across that may help us in the new environment? (ie. don't listen to your voice mail on speaker phone); and What are some creative ways to relay 'cubicle rules' to the rest of the team?"
1) the aforementioned listening to voicemail (or any call) on speakerphone. :)
2) Play your music on headphones
3) ditch the amusing new mail sound. Silence is golden.
4) Get your own lighting so everyone can leave the nasty overhead fluorescent lights off and light to their own specifications. better on the eyes, too.
5) To get someone's attention, arc a rubberband over the cubicle wall. Or hand-toss a nerf dart.
6) If you're the nervous twitch type, don't thump your pen on the desk incessantly, or whack your heel against the side of your chair, or whatever irritating thing you do.
7) If you have any brains, get some earplugs or a noise-cancellation headset.
8) Set the temp to a standard 72. Deal with it however you need to. "Space-heaters & deskfans for some, miniature American flags for others!"
9) Talk to the Claw! Don't stand around chatting with someone when it's obvious they're trying to get some work done. Be considerate - cube farms are hard enough to work in without a Chatty Cathy around.
10) PROFIT!
End of Line
My biggest gripe in a cube farm:
Eating.
If you want to eat in your cube, fine. Just keep it within your cube. I don't want to know about it. I don't want to smell your questionable fish-and-garlic-suprise, I don't want to have to wipe your barbeque sauce off my white board, and whatever it is you are eating I don't want to hear you chewing it (or doing what ever that guy in the fly did to consume his food).
And speaking of flies, take your trash to the lunch room as soon as you are done. The janitors will not dig through your pile of printouts to find your week-old pesto pieces, but there are six legged clean-up crews that will.
Thank you.
-- MarkusQ
DONT leave your cell phones ON at your desk and leave your desk. You may like your ring tone but it will probably bother others.
DONT use a radio without headphones. Background noise is what it will come off as to others, no matter how low it is it will probably annoy others. Some people don't like it. ASK FIRST!
DONT humm or make lots of weird noises, it may annoy those arround you.
DONT use the hands free on your telephone, cause most people WONT want to hear your conversations. You should use a conference room for meetings even phone meetings.
DONT surf porno sites, other may be offended, also watch what you do surf, as others may be offended. Yes many places have no web surfing rules, but most places are pretty laxed about it.
Only 'flamers' flame!
Does slashdot hate my posts?
Not just any headphones. You need the over-the-ear kind that actually seals over the ears. A lot of headphones produce almost as much second-hand noise as regular speakers.
Headphones that cover the ears provide some benefits:
- They keep the sound inside, reducing the noise that others might hear.
- They block out external noises, so you don't have to turn up the volume as much.
- This also reduces the noise that others might hear.
- It allows you to hear your music more clearly.
- It helps to prevent you from incurring hearing loss (not total loss, but partial loss; a serious and common result of using headphones)
If you intend to use them often, I recommend buying a high-quality pair. Don't consider anything under $40.