Participation in Company-sponsored Activities 1

[MadMango]

I hope I posted this in the proper forum. I am curious as to when participation in company-sponsored activities cross the line and becomes brown-nosing, elitism, joining the Good 'ol Boys, etc, etc?

I have played in company volleyball teams and pool leagues in the past, and participated in 5k runs before. I never considered these actions to warrant any caution, but that was for companies with 300-1500 employees. Participation was limited to 10% at most. Now I find myself working at a company with less than 100 employees, and notice that the participants in activities seem to be the same clique. I have been invited to join a few company teams and a few other activities, and for some reason I hesitate.

Perhaps at other companies, team swag was limited to cheap silk screened shirts, or ball caps, which I didn't see a problem with. At this company regardless of the activity, high quality, company branded gear is doled out. I look at the rowing or cycling jerseys and think the quality is on par with a professional endeavor, as I sit in a thread-bare office chair that should have been burned last year.

Invites to participate are limited, though announced in an air of all-inclusiveness, and as I said, seem to only be the same people. At least, this is what I perceive it to be. I would like to join in for the "fun factor", but I do not want to have a label placed on me. Thoughts?

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[MadMango]

I haven't asked for a new chair yet. maybe I should join the team and use the new jersey as a chair cover?

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[kontiki99]

I used to have a manager that invited me to intelligent design meetings. As far as I'm concerned, it's the networking through church that you have to watch out for. They will cut reasonable people out of the picture in a minute. Nothing you can do if they are in the majority except keep it to yourself until you can move on.

 

[MikeHalloran]

Start a chair racing team.

Problem solved.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[patprimmer]

Mike

That is an absolute Halloran Classic

Regards
Pat
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[monkeydog]

MadMango,

If you don't ask for the new chair, you won't get it.

Hey, you may even get some mild entertainment out of it for the next couple of months. If they approve the chair, people will be flipping out because you got a chair and they did not. If they disapprove a chair, go out and buy one, push the old chair in the hallway, again, more entertainment for a few months.

 

[HgTX]

I could see a problem if you were being pressured to join and you didn't want to, but it sounds like the opposite.

I don't see much of a problem if it seems that "no" would be an acceptable answer.

If you're a decent guy to those who tend not to get invited, then they shouldn't resent you for being picked for the team. And it could put you in a position maybe to encourage the pickers to broaden their reach beyond the clique.

Hg

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[PeterStock]

Try: "I would join the team, but my desk chair hurts my back"

Peter Stockhausen
Senior Design Analyst (Checker)
Infotech Aerospace Services

http://www.infotechpr.net

 

[cksh]

I have always kept work and recreation separate. I have no one I would consider a friend here at work. I would consider them acquaintaces. I find it difficult, and not sure how others do it, going from a working relationship, to a let's hang out and have some fun. Everyone here acts as though they get along, but that is only on the surface. Not sure how they can go play softball, or other activities, together and not kill each other.


For me at least, I would not be interested. I need to shut work off at the end of the day and would only be reminded of it if I had to see someone from the office during my free time.

But I am an introvert

 

[HgTX]

Working someplace where I can't even imagine being friends with any of those people would be a truly miserable experience for me. I can't imagine spending 8 or 9 hours a day surrounded entirely by people I would have nothing to do with if I wasn't forced to. Surrounded 95%, sure, but 100%? No way.

Hg



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[SNORGY]

Some people *choose* to not have friends at work, or *don't allow themselves* to have friends at work. I think I am also one of those people. I think it is a classic emotional self-defense / self-preservation mechanism. It sure has a way of making the layoffs easier to take, if nothing else. It is also much easier to rebuild a good "colleagueship" after a serious disagreement than it is to rebuild a good "friendship" after a serious disagreement.

I personally prefer to remain objective and emotionally detached among colleagues. It doesn't mean that I don't like them (I do very much), it just means that I can more easily separate life's baggage that way.

Regards,

SNORGY.

 

[calguy07]

it all depends how you connect with your co-workers as persons. for me, i don't really have an interest in doing anything outside of work with anyone. its certainly a choice but its based on the fact that i just don't have anything in common with them and have no interest in doing the things they like to do. i like them as co-workers but i'd just rather leave it at that. if i had several things in common with them then i'd definitely consider it. its unfortunate as its probably hurting my career development as others that do have things in common, especially with the managers/owners are probably more likely to progress. its also critical for networking as you're more likely to keep in touch once they move on to other places and could even provide you with an opportunity down the road. i'd rather take my chances than waste time faking interest and trying to be like them just for the sake of having people to hang out with. i have other people that i could hang out with outside of work doing stuff i actually want to do.

 

[kevindurette]

Our office chairs are garbage too. I ended up rescuing a nice chair out of the garbage (from a better-funded department in the company). It only took one night's worth of welding, grinding, and painting. ;-)

 

[kevindurette]

I hate golf, so I skip out on that all the time, and everybody understands. I enjoyed the biggest loser competition, though. I do a lot of the table-moving and legwork for various events because few able-bodied people can get away from their desk long enough to do such things. Do what you like to do, and F the neigh-sayers. You know in your heart that you're not trying to brown-nose. If anything, you're keeping your friends close and your enemies closer.

 

[HSNIC]

Oh man! Golf! That reminds me of a story. I used to work at Langan, and this Scottish guy, (Yeah I know), would round up all the people to play golf and in an email. He told us that we have to take it seriously and go practice before the day of the outing. Yeah, I'm gonna go and spend an afternoon and upwards of $60 so you can have a better team score! Sure buddy!!

I was gonna wear shorts and a bucket cap like Bill Murray in Caddy Shack and video tape and edit with the Kenny Loggins song and everything, but word got out and he banned me from playing!

 

[spongebob007]

I don't really have friends at the office. I keep it what I call "polite but professional". I am not a criminal or doing anything wrong, but there are things about my life that I would rather not have my boss know, but I have found though experience that you really don't know who you can trust at work, and things you say in confidence to your "trusted" co-workers often have a way of getting back to your boss, and you never know when you might come in on Monday morning only to find out that the coworker you confided in about how often you come to work hung over and late is now your supervisor. So basically if there is something about me I would not want my boss to know, I won't share it with ANYBODY at work.