A long day at the office can drain your energy and fill you up with the desire to get takeaway and spend the evening on the sofa.
For anyone who isn't familiar with the setting, this might sound strange, but just scroll through the Instagram account @work.facts and you'll immediately understand everything.
It sheds light on the main factors contributing to this occupational exhaustion by sharing memes that humorously illustrate the challenges arising in the corporate world.
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8 hour day also assumed you lived and worked close by - none of this 90 min commute each way.
However, for everyone who's interested, there might also be a scientific explanation for why so many of us feel empty after coming home from the office.
A recent study that scanned people's brains at different points in their work day found that high-demand tasks that require intense, constant concentration can lead to a build-up of a potentially toxic chemical called glutamate.
Normally used to send signals from nerve cells, in large quantities glutamate alters the performance of a brain region involved in planning and decision-making, the lateral prefrontal cortex (lPFC).
And your sick leave. You’re not a hero for getting other people sick.
The authors of the study divided their 40 participants into two groups and had both groups sit in an office in front of a computer for six and a half hours.
One group had to do challenging tasks that called on their working memory and constant attention.
For instance, letters were displayed on a computer screen every 1.6 seconds and participants had to sort them into vowels and consonants or, depending on the color of the letter, upper or lowercase.
The second group had similar but much simpler tasks.
I interviewed with Fox Tech earlier this year. My resume was passed along by a friend who worked there but I didn't really want to work there for so many reasons. Luckily the job I interviewed for was way out of my league so I didn't have to deal with moral quandaries (it would have been insane amounts of money, and I likely wouldn't have passed it up).
Load More Replies...I took a job were the previous person had walked out because it was such a lousy job. Then i walked out because it was a lousy job. Then the person who replaced me walked out because it was a lousy job. Good 'affirmation' vibes there.
Or the company went belly up not long after you left. Or the a*****e boss who made your life hell is now in prison for (take your pick of crimes bosses have committed). Or you see your ex-boss working at Mickey Ds.
Break your ankle and have surgery and be out for 3 months. Suddenly being a KM is the hardest Job even though I was told I was incompetent for months but now I’m suddenly the most missed human in the building from FOH/BOH go figure. One more month to go!!!
working as a cleaner for a company. I have several clients. I had one steady client for 15hrs/week. The big CEO of that company (HQ in Brussels, not my actual client) decided our cleaning company was too expensive and we lost the contract. New company was waaaaayyy cheaper.... yeah, because they said they could clean the place in 8 hrs. Guess what, they cant. Apparently the place is a dump now. Also big communication failure as the new cleaner just doesnt speak dutch at all so they also cant ask her to pay attention to certain things or tell her she forgot something. Ran into someone the other day and she wnet all dramatic and begged "cant you come back??" i just laughed :-D and said "tell the big guys in Brussels!"
Had a place I heard they hired 2-3 people. And one of them quit about a month into it because he was working too much.
Load More Replies...I had worked for years at a big corporation when they changed my supervisor to a guy who was a complete d**k. So things went badly after that, but my wife worked in supervision with him, and I heard through the grapevine that he said what's he going to do, quit? Two weeks later I put in my notice and I've been at my current company for about 17 years now. And that prior company completely went to hell. Yes my wife left it too. But before that I got to know that he got demoted and ended up working for my wife who treated him pretty strictly. Ha.
YES. I find it funnier when there's a feeling of surprise by management after the fact like they really had no idea all of the stuff I did day by day.
I left a company as they were embarking on an objectively foolhardy IT initiative. They had just offered to make me part of an "elite team" who would basically be shackled to their desks but be eligible for big bonuses if certain crazy milestones were achieved. After I quit, I heard through the grapevine that it was every bit the train wreck I expected, and the company was bought up by its rival soon afterwards.
I worked at a clothing store, I organized all the footwear every week in that store; started a new job that needed safety shoes went looking through the store and the entire footwear section looked like a warzone
That's the best part of leaving a job is them falling apart without me !
Like when they tried to add another person's ENTIRE job on top of mine. I said, "Look at the security footage (bank) and tell me WHEN I would have time to do this?" They said, "Too bad, it's your job now." So I quit ... I heard that they had to hire 2 people to replace what *I* had been doing BEFORE they tried to add more sh** to my job
My husband asked for a raise at his job of nearly 20 years and warned them denying the raise would cause him to walk. They called his bluff and he started a new position 3 weeks later. They're still struggling to try and replace him with 4 new people at $21 an hour each, and they can't get any of them to stay longer than a few months. They wouldn't give him $25 an hour, but now they can't even replace him for $84 an hour. He's much happier at this newer job.
I was a Registered Mental Health Nurse. I suffered some pretty serious assaults. After I left, a nurse was held hostage by a patient for about 14 hours. Best thing I ever did getting out of that hell hole!
I was working at McDonald's and had a coworker who always complained about my work. I was good, mind you. After I left to work somewhere else in my field she found me and begged me to come back because the whole thing turned into a dumpster fire
The grocery store I worked for in my 20s is now out of business 😁😁😁
I spent ten years at Apple. I got there right as Steve was having his meltdowns and then left. Look what happened to Apple after I left! 🤯
Oh yes! I still have there some ears and eyes, and everytime I get some updates, I need a bucket of popcorn.
The last company I worked at went so far south that within 3 years of my departure they shut their doors. The Glassdoor reviews got savage during those 3 years.
Yep, and I did. I was so happy, I was rubbing my hands together with glee!
I once put in my two weeks notice in and 3 days after I left the business closed. Not only did I have perfect timing I kinda got the last laugh because the owner was an absolute d**k and had to file bankruptcy. Good Times
When I left my last job for my current job, it was music to my ears AND soul hearing that it took TWO people & 3 YEARS to get everything back in order!
I was laid off from Nortel in early 2001with six months pay. Later, the morale went through the floor and 'redundancies' were given ONE month pay. (Interestingly, most of the top executives stayed until the bitter end, on inflated salaries.) They laid off all the income producing (ie sales engineers) and dealer assistance personnel, and wondered why their income tanked! At least I was shunted out while the going was good! But it was very sad to see all that great technology being sold off for a bargain price, to ultimately disappear, and eliminating yet another competitor for Cisco.
This is happening right now at a restaurant I worked at a couple months ago. The mass exodus has been underway and management has no idea why they're having a hard time holding onto people. Let me put it this way: one very recent ex employee is also a writer and will be writing an article on how this place treats their employees. I told him he should write a book, especially since he plans on interviewing as many of us ex employees as possible. This restaurant is not going to last if it keeps going like this
Interestingly, both groups managed an average 80% correct response rate.
But the researchers used magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to scan participants' brains and measure levels of metabolites.
The authors of the study took readings at the beginning, middle, and end of the day.
They discovered fatigue markers, such as increased glutamate concentration, but only in the high-demand group. (The build-up of toxic chemicals was only observed in the lateral prefrontal cortex and not the primary visual cortex.)
Try working midnights. Two nights off feels like one. One night off feels like nothing.
The corporate overlords love this language. They want people working 40+ without overtime. It's evil.
So wrong… I get so much work done from home. Introvert here.
YES! I worked the same place for 12 years and they are in this death spiral right now and I feel like I need popcorn because I got out three years ago.
After the high and low-demand cognitive tasks, the two groups also had decision tests. This included choices about their willingness to ride a bike at different intensities, to perform harder or easier versions of cognitive control tasks, and how long they were willing to wait to receive a larger reward (the rewards themselves ranged from approximately $0.11 to $52.80 and the delays for receiving the reward ranged from immediate cash after the experiment or bank transfer after to one year).
I used to work for a government department where we held meetings to discuss what should be on the agenda for the next meeting
Yeah, why should i work for a management that so inept at organising things that everything is always done 'under pressure'?
The place I used to work, they sent a trainer who had never worked in our department and had zero knowledge to train the new employees. I was assigned the mentor once they finished the training. First thing I told them is to forget whatever they have learned because she knows s**t. 'we-were-told-to-do-xyz-for-abc-situation' became a usual statement followed by my 'forget-what-she-taught-you-if-you-want-to-continue-working'. And yes, each one of them cleared the accreditation.
Boss makes a dollar. You make a dime. Take your shits on company time. Found scratched into a wooden sign on the restroom door that said," only use restroom on scheduled breaks.
In the end, the high-demand group preferred choices that were less taxing. These participants' pupils were less dilated (dilated pupils suggest arousal) and took less time to make decisions, which indicates they experienced this part of the experiment as undemanding.
So the study raises questions about the structure of our office routine. According to the results, we probably should break up tasks that need working memory and constant attention and take into account the fact that performance takes a hit.
"Science has shown ... that mental fatigue has real effects," Zoltán Molnár, a Professor of Developmental Neuroscience at the University of Oxford and Tamas Horvath, a Professor of Neurobiology and Ob/Gyn at Yale University, commented on the study.
Furthermore, they pointed out that we have plenty of similar examples. For example, after a long day in court, judges are more likely to deny parole (which is considered the safer option) and clinicians are more likely to prescribe unnecessary antibiotics at the end of a tiring clinical session.
Sensible wages, sensible taxes. Enough with the minimum wage below subsistence level. Pay according to value delivered. You'll get a surprise at how much retail and service personnel are worth.
I found in a fortune cookie a saying that goes like this “ everyone has a photographic memory, some just don’t have film” I put that little thing on the copier, doubled the size, took that and doubled that size, cut it out and put on my wall, when my coworkers repetitively ask me the same questions I point to it
Oh so true. Take a five day vacation, with weekends before and after. By the end of the first day, it's like there was no time off. Nobody did s**t except put it on my desk.
Literally got mad at my coworker when I bumped into him on the stairwell, he comes in earlier than I do and I hadn't even clocked in yet and he's tryna ask me questions and say oh I need xyz in an email I'm like ??? My guy can I CLOCK IN FIRST??
Current goals: Survive the Holidays, January: get a new PCP and get the whole body checked out, including teeth. Find out if my insurance covers a vasectomy, they are way more expensive than I thought.
Was that when Rose brought that very short man home and Blanche said something about shrimps?
The pressures of a high-demand workplace often result in employees feeling drained and unfulfilled by the end of the day. This is further compounded when management doesn't fully appreciate the workload's demands. Similarly, an article discusses a situation where a manager's micromanagement exacerbated a task, illustrating what can happen when oversight becomes overbearing.
You can find insights on such managerial issues in this article.
Most people have a commute over 30 minutes and work longer than 8 hours. Some companies make you take 30-60 minutes for lunch, too. I have less sleep and less free time than this example. Salaried professionals are often expected to put in more than 8 hours of work each day. Welcome to corporate America 🙄. Plus I'll be working at least till I'm 70 due to high housing and health care costs. My parents were born in the later 1920s and had it easier than I do now. Both retired early with good pensions.
My job had this cool thing where you had authority for nothing but were responsible for everything.
NO! Turn off thie phone notifications! You are not paid to be anxious off the clock!
"Every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that's on the worst day of my life."
The fact that that same coworker is complaining to others about you , you never think about
I have a designfor the perfect meeting room. No windows. No chairs. No tables. Stand or sit on the floor. Want to take notes? Use a clipboard. After 30 mins, door opens automatically, bright strobe lights begin to flash, very loud marching band music begins to play.
Want to work somewhere where no-one expects you to do your job? Get a job in HR.
My one is always : Me "Can you send me that stuff so I can do my job". Them : "Sure" *Three days pass*. Them : "Here you go". *30 minutes pass*. Them "Have you finished yet? There is a rush you know". Me : O_o
Q: “How long will this take?” A: “Eight working days.” Q: “Ok, we’ll think about it.” (Seven days later, after hearing nothing from them the whole time) Q: “Can you have it ready tomorrow by 9 am?”
Load More Replies...Besides barely above minimum wage pay, I have an a*****e of a boss that insults or belittles me at least 4 times a day, then complains the business doesn't make any money WHILE GIVING AWAY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES as he sees fit. AND I went back to work almost immediately after having a brain tumour removed and during radiation therapy I worked every day. Never take my lunch time.
In Japan, this is called "power harassment", when bosses treat their employees like emotional punching bags.
Load More Replies...Here's some food for thought: Imagine all the people who are dissatisfied with their job/working conditions. Now, think about how effective of a strike it would be if they all cared enough to collectively change things instead of just posting memes about it.
[#32 "Companies should legalize 5 'no mood to work' leaves every year".] It's called "Calling in well": Me: "Sorry, Boss, I feel too good to come to work today"!
I work with so many s****y people. They call in "sick" constantly whenever they feel like it knowing they won't be fired because we are so short staffed. It forces others to have to cover their shifts. Weekends are the worst. I have coworkers flat out admit that they call in "sick" to catch the football game. Then we have folks who get mandated to cover for someone, then call in "sick" themselves for their next shift.
They promoted a guy over me, no problem. I’m a VP, he’s a Senior VP. I can deal with the SVP being paid more than me. Thing is, he’s smart, but he has the robotic personality of a Roomba, and tends to be bossy - even to clients. In the past nine months three big clients have each angrily told our manager they never want to see him again. My manager told me to fix each of the relationships and then take over those clients for the Senior VP. I did and those clients love us again. No mention of a bonus, though….
We are the people with the same pain points! Glad few raised their voice 😃
My one is always : Me "Can you send me that stuff so I can do my job". Them : "Sure" *Three days pass*. Them : "Here you go". *30 minutes pass*. Them "Have you finished yet? There is a rush you know". Me : O_o
Q: “How long will this take?” A: “Eight working days.” Q: “Ok, we’ll think about it.” (Seven days later, after hearing nothing from them the whole time) Q: “Can you have it ready tomorrow by 9 am?”
Load More Replies...Besides barely above minimum wage pay, I have an a*****e of a boss that insults or belittles me at least 4 times a day, then complains the business doesn't make any money WHILE GIVING AWAY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES as he sees fit. AND I went back to work almost immediately after having a brain tumour removed and during radiation therapy I worked every day. Never take my lunch time.
In Japan, this is called "power harassment", when bosses treat their employees like emotional punching bags.
Load More Replies...Here's some food for thought: Imagine all the people who are dissatisfied with their job/working conditions. Now, think about how effective of a strike it would be if they all cared enough to collectively change things instead of just posting memes about it.
[#32 "Companies should legalize 5 'no mood to work' leaves every year".] It's called "Calling in well": Me: "Sorry, Boss, I feel too good to come to work today"!
I work with so many s****y people. They call in "sick" constantly whenever they feel like it knowing they won't be fired because we are so short staffed. It forces others to have to cover their shifts. Weekends are the worst. I have coworkers flat out admit that they call in "sick" to catch the football game. Then we have folks who get mandated to cover for someone, then call in "sick" themselves for their next shift.
They promoted a guy over me, no problem. I’m a VP, he’s a Senior VP. I can deal with the SVP being paid more than me. Thing is, he’s smart, but he has the robotic personality of a Roomba, and tends to be bossy - even to clients. In the past nine months three big clients have each angrily told our manager they never want to see him again. My manager told me to fix each of the relationships and then take over those clients for the Senior VP. I did and those clients love us again. No mention of a bonus, though….
We are the people with the same pain points! Glad few raised their voice 😃
