Dear Colleague,
According to a recent article in The Washington Post, one of the unintended consequences of returning to the office after the pandemic is that the “suck-ups” will be back in force.
You know what a suck-up is, don’t you?
It’s the guy who hangs out by the water cooler or the executive washroom in the hopes of having a quick chat with the boss. They wear the same clothing as the boss, take up the same hobbies, and follow the same sports teams so they’ll have something to schmooze about. Some suck-ups even go so far as to start smoking cigarettes just to get a little extra facetime with the boss on the sidewalk.
Of course, the suck-ups never really went away. They were the ones who logged onto Zoom calls five minutes early so they could get some extra time to tell the boss how wonderful he is. The suck-up, in fact, will do just about anything he can think of to move up in the organization except … you know, his job.
(It reminds me of George Costanza on Seinfeld who came up with the idea of leaving his car in the parking lot 24/7 so his bosses would think he was the first to arrive at the office in the morning and the last to leave at night. Meanwhile, he spent the day fast asleep under his desk.)
But the return of the suck-up is only one of the problems we’ll be facing as employees come back to the office. Like how to greet your co-workers, for example. Handshake? Fist bump? Air hug? In fact, some people will be meeting their co-workers in person for the first time. “Don’t I know you from somewhere?” you ask. “Yes, we’ve been working together on the same project for two years.”
What are you supposed to wear to the office? How do you handle telephone calls when the guy in the next cubicle can hear everything you say (especially calls to your bookie)? Even the setting on the thermostat is something that will need to be negotiated again.
As one woman told the Post reporter: “We’re actually seeing far greater struggles on the human side as people are trying to figure out exactly what the new routines are going to be and as organizations are struggling to adjust to people’s new beliefs about work.”
It’s going to be a minefield, in other words.
Fortunately, you don’t have to face it alone. I can put you in touch with trainers, consultants, coaches, and speakers who have been studying these problems and coming up with effective solutions that you can put to work in your office.
Just give me a call at 202-333-0644 or send an email to Sharon@TrainersAndConsultants.net and I’ll give you the names of at least three top professionals who can do the job you need at a price you can afford. As always, my service comes at no cost to you.
I’m afraid the suck-ups will always be with us. So will the whole cast and crew of weird characters who populate the American workplace. You can never get rid of all these odd birds.
But with our help, at least you can get them flying in formation!
Sincerely,
Sharon Armstrong
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