One advantage of working in a corporate office is seeing the full range of people’s personalities and quirks. This can sometime be a challenge in the work environment, but seeing so many type of people is perfect for a writer. Hearing conversations and seeing how people react to different situations provides great material for fictional characters.
While the day-to-day activities in an office setting can sometimes be mundane, when change occurs, people reveal their true natures. This has been evident in my office as the cafeteria and some bathrooms have undergone an overhaul. The remodel has taken about six months resulting in not only a temporary, and much smaller, cafeteria space, but also occasional bathroom, hallway, and parking lot closures.
By far, the biggest concern amongst my co-workers was the bathrooms. As much disruption as the smaller cafeteria space and the closed parking area cause, the bathrooms provided the most discussion. In an office of over 300 people, the construction crew and office administrators thought it was okay to close all but one bathroom area. The bathroom kept open had four stalls in each (men’s and women’s). Needless to say, the women (especially) in the office didn’t appreciate standing in line for the bathroom at work.
As construction dragged on and more changes were made, I made it a priority to observe my co-workers. Their reactions to altered routines and updated flooring provided great insight for future characters.
- People are creatures of habit. Whether it’s the same morning routine, the same route to work, or the same parking spaces, people like familiarity. They get used to certain things and when those things don’t happen, they get thrown off for the rest of the day. Usually this means a minor distraction or an extra few minutes of commute time, but in their minds, having to change requires a strategic design worthy of great military generals planning troop movements.
- People like to analyze change. No matter how big or small the change, everyone has an opinion on whether the change is good or bad, when the change should be implemented, and how the change impacts the company and employees. Water cooler gossip shifts from reality television stars to talk of management’s plans and the aftermath that results from forced routine changes.
- People don’t like being told what to do. Change is hard enough for some people even when they have input on the changes. But when the powers-that-be push the change without gathering insight from employees, or in many cases, without notification that changes are coming. When employees feel changes are forced on them, the opinions shared over the water cooler are even more intense. Even with something as relatively minor as a “fancy” cafeteria (as some have said) or having to use different bathrooms for a while, people tend not to react well to changes over which they have no control.
How do you handle change? What parts of your daily routine do you most miss when something causes you to have to change things up?
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