Faux Pas to Avoid at Work

Here is another great list of etiquette rules from expert Myka Meier. In this list she discusses office etiquette. Myka says, “Having good etiquette at work mostly simply means to be considerate and respectful of everyone around you”.


If you have a door, close it if you take personal calls. If you don’t have a door or are in an open-plan space, keep private calls short by saying you’ll call the person back on your next break, or walk to an area that is more conducive to personal calls like a lounge area or even outside. If you work in an open office space and professional phone calls distract you, remember that it’s probably not the person’s intention to bother you. Try to be understanding of the situation and keep a good pair of headphones nearby.
Keep your computer and phone muted or on silent so that every time you get an email or message it does not alert everyone on your floor.
Do not use a conference room to take long personal calls or treat it as your personal office. Squatting is for the gym—not the workplace.
In addition to doing your part to keep the bathroom clean, do not use the restroom to socialize, whether you need to call your mom or catch up on the latest office news. It’s called water cooler chat for a reason.
photo credit This is Glamorous
If you’re in a meeting, give your undivided attention to the person speaking. If you must send off a quick note or check something on your phone or computer, keep it short and sweet.
Unless everyone is in on the joke, keep loud conversation to a minimum. There might be a distraction but you don’t want to become one.
While eating lunch away from our desks is a luxury these days, remember those sitting around you. Try to avoid foods that splatter or slurp or have a lingering smell in a shared office space. As much as you may love steamed fish, the rest of your team will probably won’t.
You might love your gardenia-bomb perfume, but the office is a place to keep scent subtle. If you choose to put on fragrance, remember it’s meant to go on pulse points only and not clothing—it can permeate the whole room.
(I have to be so careful with this, I love a wallflower in my office but I can’t leave it in. Not everyone will appreciate smelling apple all day). 
To read the rest of Myka’s list visit the website here. I also wrote about office faux’s. You may visit them here and here. Enjoy!!!!
(photos via Pinterest)