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    Coworker Stephanie demands silence in an open office until 10 am for her "morning focus time" routine, gets reprimanded by management: ‘She'll shush people who are having work conversations at their desks’

    She even put a sign on her desk that says "QUIET PLEASE - FOCUSING" with little sparkle stickers on it.

    I would like to begin with a short message to Stephanie: Oh Stephanie, Stephanie. I'm really not the vengeful type, but by god, if you ever need a job, I pray you land one here with me because the amount of fun I would have with you as a coworker just seems too much. I mean, I trust my ability to make someone as horrible as her quit pretty quickly, but for the short amount of time she would be my coworker, she would learn what annoying sounds sound like.

    To me, it sounds like Stephanie is a Franz Kafka fan, only that, unlike other Kafka fans, including me, she seems to aim at starring in a new Kafka book. And because she knows that, unfortunately, it isn't possible. She has a goal of turning her colleague's life into a Kafkaesque nightmare.

    Author image for Etai Eshet Etai Eshet
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    • Entitled coworker expects everyone to accommodate her "morning routine"

      A coworker gestures for quiet at her workstation, appearing to demand silence in a shared office environment.
      via Krakenimages.com

      Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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    • As if dragging yourself out of bed every morning, getting ready, and commuting to 8 plus hours shared with people you did not, I repeat, DID NOT choose to spend ANY time with, people who sometimes don't exactly have your idea of how one behaves around other human beings, isn't hard enough, Stephanie here seems to think everyone around her needs a little nudge closer to losing it completely. And that's what gets me worked up about this story.

    • In Franz Kafka’s world, authority often takes strange forms. There’s always someone insisting on procedure over reason, order over humanity, and rules nobody seems to have agreed to. In one of Kafka’s stories, for example, a man might spend years trying to understand an inscrutable court system. In our modern office version, that role belongs to Stephanie, self-appointed keeper of morning silence.

    • We have this coworker Stephanie who has decided that she needs complete silence in the office until 10am for her "morning focus time." Our office has an open floor plan and normally people chat, take calls, have meetings, etc starting at 9am when we all arrive.
      via Decent-Durian217

    • Stephanie’s crusade against noise isn’t just workplace eccentricity, it’s miniature bureaucracy covered in glitter. She drafts emails titled like directives, enforces arbitrary rules with moral conviction, and transforms an open office into a psychological maze where coworkers must second-guess whether answering a call is a form of rebellion. 

    • The absurdity doesn’t come from the silence itself, but in the logic gymnastics: the person doing their job becomes the aggresor, while the one interrupting a work call claims the moral high ground of productivity. Stephanie’s “focus time” isn’t just personal preference, it’s a quiet (see what I did there?) system of control, obviously fueled by a crazy amount of entitlement. 

    • Pretty standard office stuff. But Stephanie has been sending emails to the whole team asking us to keep it down before 10 because she "needs to ease into her day." At first people tried to be accommodating but its gotten ridiculous.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • She'll shush people who are having work conversations at their desks. She's asked our manager to ban morning meetings.
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • Shush all you want Stephanie

      coworker holds a finger to her lips in a shared office, enforcing silence while others converse nearby.
      via BearFotos

      Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

    • So Stephanie can keep sighing, huffing, puffing, and grunting all she wants because, gladly, her coworkers don’t seem to have the same Kafkaesque tendencies, they, like normal people, come to work to work and have no plans of rolling with her office-sized Trial.

    • She even put a sign on her desk that says "QUIET PLEASE - FOCUSING" with little sparkle stickers on it.
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • Yesterday I was on a call with a client at 9:30am (at my own desk, normal speaking volume) and she came over and tapped my shoulder repeatedly until I muted.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • Then she whispered very dramatically "Some of us are trying to work." I was literally working???
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • Keep Calm and Work Loud

      A woman sits at a desk in a modern office with eyes closed and hands raised, appearing to meditate, trying to saty calm and focus beside a laptop and paperwork.
      via TetianaKtv

      Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

    • On a work call??? For work??? I told her I was on a client call and couldn't be interrupted and she said "Well you should take those in a conference room if you're going to be loud." I wasn't even being loud!
      via Decent-Durian217
    • And there are no conference rooms available half the time! Our manager finally had to send an email saying that normal office noise during business hours is expected and if she needs silence she can wear headphones or find an empty room.
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • She's been passive aggressive ever since. Sighing loudly, making comments about "professionalism," sending Teams messages about noise levels.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • Pristine-Mastodon-37 If she needs to ease into her day then she should come in an hour before everyone else. Problem solved :)
      via Decent-Durian217
    • OP Decent-Durian217 Exactly! I never thought of that, thank you. I might tell her that. She's being really insensitive. We respect her choice and beliefs but she needs to do the same. Respect begets respect.
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • lapsteelguitar Your manager needs to take more direct & concrete action with Stephanie. Because she is, IMHO, harassing people and creating a hostile work environment.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • OP Decent-Durian217 That's what I don't understand.. our manager seems not to cate that much. I mean, they could have called a meeting regarding this where everyone voices out their opinions in this matter
      via Decent-Durian217
    • IAMA_Shark__AMA This, literally. When I worked in an open office like this, I also struggled with hitting the ground running regarding office noise and socializing. So I... Got up. earlier? It was that easy.
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • OkExternal7904 This is what the Golden Child who never hears the word no from their parents, grandparents, etc., turn into when they enter the real world.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • Colo Transplant I love WFH.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • Monster_Voice She sounds lovely... you should get one of those prank remote controlled noise makers and install it near her desk.
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • Dubiousgoober Stephanie is in the wrong job. Your manager should manage her out of her job. There are two parts of most jobs. One part is the skills you were hired for. The second part is how well you work with other people. She's failing at 50% of her job.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • hollyjazzy This was my thought too. I like to come in earlier than my start time just so I can have a cup of tea and start the day calmly, no frazzled by my commute.
      via Decent-Durian217
    • Arlaneutique So, just what I would do. But the very next time she says something I would respond with this. "Stephanie, this is an office where we come to work. We begin working at 9am not 10am. I am sorry if this is difficult for you, truly I am. But an entire office full of people need and want to get our work done. You asking this of us is inconsiderate of you. You want the entire office to disrupt our work day for one persons comfort. But you don't seem to care about the comfort of an entire
      via Decent-Durian217
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    • FatboyChester Tell her to star5 coming in at 8, when no one is there yet and by the time everybody gets there at 9 she will be focused and wont need quiet.
      via Decent-Durian217

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