It’s Tuesday and I got to thinking about how many people are terrified to go into work. Yes, terrified. For some of us, it’s our bully of a boss or egghead of an employee. For others of us it’s the reality that we can’t possibly get our work done (sometimes because our supervisor or manager has unrealistic expectations but often it’s a sign we’re settling for the “wrong” job for us!). And then there are those of us who dread the gossip that’s going around so many of our workplaces.
I saw a piece on ABC-tv’s Good Morning America yesterday morning that said that an unofficial survey by Account Temps showed that 28% of those surveyed feel gossip is the biggest breach of etiquette in the workplace. Another survey said that gossip is the second largest distraction in the workplace after cell phones.
If you’ve ever been the subject of a gossip-fest (and count yourself lucky if you haven’t), you know how devastating gossip can be. And as one who’s been a gossip-target before, I know it can be a bit terrifying – wondering what people, especially my boss, may be thinking about who I am or my ability to get my job done.
So how about you? If you’ve ever had to overcome gossip, will you share in our Safe Space how you overcame it? Or maybe you need to do some venting about the gossip going around – or that you’re part of spreading – right now.
And if you’d like to watch or read the transcript of the Good Morning America segment, you can read it at ABC’s Good Morning America site.