Conventional career advice overwhelmingly teaches that office-politicking extroverts are best set up for success. As a result, if you’re offbeat, you’ve probably felt that the parts of your personality that seem out of sync are weaknesses you need to overcome.  What companies really need are passionate, original thinkers. Businesses need “disruptors” — Silicon Valley’s favourite word — and they need employees who are too odd to understand the ways things are “supposed to work.” Fellow misfits, do not fear: You do not have to change your fundamental being in order to thrive in your career.

Embrace Your Weird

<ul><li>Your unique point of view is a strength, not a weakness. </li><li>Your sensitivity is what allows you to read a room and, ostensibly, play to it. </li><li>Your emotional intensity/curmudgeonly nature/crippling social anxiety/outsider status means you’re not constantly trying to curry favour with an uninspiring boss or your phoning-it-in co-workers. </li></ul>Having the courage to celebrate your differences and communicate your ideas will help you succeed in nearly any vocation. So keep at it. Push yourself to share ideas or fixes to long-standing problems. Propose your big, wild dream project. Embrace your quirks.

Your Quirk Is Your Strength

The impulse to want to fake it, to be more poised, polished or more like what you perceive all those #bosses on Instagram to be, is powerful — especially if you’ve spent a lifetime feeling odd. But pretending to be something you’re not in a new job, faking skills or contorting yourself to gain recognition, is a short-sighted strategy with little return.Your best work will come when you can be open, accountable, curious and fully who you are — not by performing some outsize version of who you think you should be.

Don't Fake It

Focus on the value and strengths you bring in this moment, even with all of your perceived flaws. Identify what it is about work that makes you feel anxious. Learn to push through this anxiety instead of running away from it. A daily meditation practice may help with this; so could a simple 10-minute walk.Pinpoint the triggers that make you feel ashamed or insecure and begin the process of overcoming them. Journaling, therapy, and confiding in friends are all potential ways to cope.

Sharpen Your Hidden Strengths

<ul><li>Many of us have been told that confidence is a fixed state — once we have it, it doesn’t go away. But confidence is actually fleeting: One day you will be swaggering around a conference room fired up to give a presentation and the next you’ll be eating your feelings in the office kitchen paralyzed by a full panic. </li><li>Most people — misfits or not — experience this sort of indecision. We think confidence is a requirement to be successful. </li><li>But instead of focusing on confidence, set your mind to developing your competence — and becoming better at what you do. </li></ul>

Confidence Is Overrated

For many of us, the biggest obstacle in the way of our success is the noise we create in our own heads: psyching ourselves out, telling ourselves we can’t do it, distracting ourselves with problems that don’t necessarily exist outside our minds. For those of us who experience these thoughts, learning to control our overthinking — and anchor ourselves back in reality — is critical. Remember that what we perceive as failure is often an opportunity.

Stop Overthinking

So you hate networking, the small talk gives you hives and you find yourself in a state of panic over professional events. All of this may make you may feel like you’re alone at work. You aren’t. You just haven’t identified your people yet. The awkward moments you experience on a regular basis can be an opening for a conversation with someone who also struggles with feeling like they don’t fit the mould. Look for these moments of honest rapport, and seek out the people at work who behave in a way you admire and whose work you genuinely respect.

Misfits, Unite!

<ul><li>Focus on building genuine connections and relationships, not transactional relationships based on what other people can do for you.</li><li>Ask questions that have nothing to do with work.</li><li>Give heartfelt compliments. </li><li>Be a person your new colleague-friends can trust. </li><li>Actively support your co-workers, back up their ideas, offer help when you can and celebrate their successes. </li><li>Set boundaries and stick to them. You are not obliged to socialize with co-workers outside the office if you don’t want to, nor do you have to take on their personal problems to be a good colleague.</li></ul>

Networking Tips For The Misfits

For all the square pegs out there who are not able to fit the round holes of corporate culture.

It's possible to survive — and even thrive — as a misfit without forcing yourself into a round corporate hole. Here's how to embrace your weird and successfully navigate the workplace. 

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A Misfit’s Guide to Navigating the Office - Guides

The sheer number of social media posts about the Will Smith-Chris Rock incident at the Oscars is proof that it’s hard to resist the attraction to drama—especially when it’s not happening to you. As companies start to return to the office and watercooler talk is easier to engage in, office drama might start to pick up, especially after going through the pandemic for the past two years.

The Lure Of Office Drama

We are social creatures who learn by comparing and contrasting ourselves with others. So when gossip and drama enter the scene and we are ‘invited’ to participate, our natural, biological inclination is to jump right into the toxicity because it affirms that we belong, and our perspective is valued.While not everyone is attracted to office drama, those who are may also find it to be a good method for battling under-stimulation or mundane daily surroundings at the office.

A Natural Inclination Towards Gossip and Drama

Many people in the workplace—at every level of an organization—have brains that crave novelty, and the juicy intrigue of an office spat can deliver on that need. However, as a bystander to the drama and not the subject of it, they may believe they are going to be viewed by the decision-makers as more stable, reliable employees, worthy of retention and better compensation when compared to the more conspicuous ‘troublemaker.'.

The Bystander

It may seem harmless on the surface, but office drama can have broader consequences. Drama can escalate to hurt people’s feelings and reputations, demotivate them, isolate them, and even take down a business.So while it might start as a healthy breather, it would be more healthy to laugh with your colleagues rather than at them. In the long run, you may be saving your own career.

The Impact Of Office Drama

Leaders who are caught up in drama or any conflicted situation have four choices:<ul><li>They can muster up the leadership courage to demand better behaviours from themselves and others.</li><li>They can learn to depersonalize the situation and live with the stress.</li><li>They can leave the organization, leave the team, and go somewhere else, which can depend on your involvement.</li><li>Become part of the problem, playing along with the games.</li></ul>

Caught Up In The Drama: The Choice For Leaders

Here’s why we crave workplace gossip—even when it’s best to avoid.


This is why you always get sucked into office drama

"It’s easy to get angry and label someone a jerk or a schmuck. It’s much harder to try to understand the underpinnings of why he or she approaches the situation that way."

<ul><li>The Narcissus – someone with an over-developed sense of entitlement, who is self-centered, condescending, and attention-seeking.</li><li>The Venus Flytrap – someone who is over-dramatic and inconsistent in reaction, and keeps everyone on edge.</li><li>The Swindler – someone who comes across as “slick” and manipulative.</li><li>The Bean Counter – someone who is so obsessed with order or perfection to such a degree that they cannot handle not being in total control.</li><li>The Distracted – someone who is constantly focused on everything else but their work, and who struggles with procrastination.</li></ul>

Types of Schmucks (1)

<ul><li>Hyde – someone who has a completely different personality and one that is the opposite of their usual behavior (similar to an addict in that respect).</li><li>The Lost – someone who exhibits memory loss, loss of language or even judgement skills.</li><li>The Robotic – someone who appears unemotional or hard to read and just can’t connect with others.</li><li>The Eccentric – someone who has difficulty relating to others because of their own view of the world, one which others may find odd.</li><li>The Suspicious – someone who is constantly feeling that there is a conspiracy against them and alienates others via paranoia.</li></ul>

Types of Schmucks (2)

"Avoiding a pattern of behavior will not cause it to magically disappear but will instead allow it to fester."

If the disruptive behavior is serious and dangerous, then immediate action is critical, whereas if the behavior is of a less-serious nature (even merely inconvenient or unpleasant) a more moderate action is appropriate. The key is confronting the offending behavior and working towards a solution. The behavior is what needs to change, and the focus needs to be on that instead of the individual.

Do Something

"Workplace relationships are just another type of relationship between people, and they need to be built on openness and communication. We need to be honest with ourselves and with each other."

Regardless of which type of disruptive behavior you are seeing, the critical element is clear and consistent communication. This may be done upfront with expectations laid out and standards of conduct that are clearly defined, in a way that no one can claim they were not aware, and as such can have no excuses. Other suggestions include direct conversations with a focus on the behavior and the resulting impact, not only on the business but on all parties.

Communication Is Key

Tactics include everything from simple conversations, casual coffee meetings, and discussions, to the more formalized documented meetings with managers and HR, to even medical/psychiatric interactions depending upon the magnitude of the workplace issue. For some, the direct approach is welcome, and for others it may only fan the flames and increase the tension. Regardless, effective communication, either in verbal or written form, solidifies the need to be clear for all parties to be successful.

Communication Tactics

"Everyone has a "schmuck" in their office--a difficult, disruptive person who upsets the workplace, confuses their co-workers and causes concern. No one is safe from a schmuck. They come in many sizes and shapes, such as: - Narcissus--the self-centered, condescending, attention-seeking peacock who tramples on others - The Flytrap--the bringer of chaos who can flip from angry to happy in an instant creating an office maelstrom - The Bean Counter--the orderly perfectionist who never gives up control even when it's full-steam-ahead to disaster - The Robot--the inflexible stone wall who is incapable of adapting, even in the face of much-needed change Sound like anyone you know? These are just a few of the more prominent schmucks. In her new book, Dr. Jody Foster explains the entire spectrum of schmucks, how they can decrease productivity, and generally make everyone else unhappy. After delineating the various types of schmucks, she looks at personality traits and explains how interactions among coworkers can become maladaptive leading to workplace disasters. She helps readers understand the schmuck as a person, figure out how to help him or her, and effect a positive solution. Dr. Foster also helps readers understand the most difficult thing of all: sometime you are the "schmuck." Let Dr. Jody Foster show you how to help the schmuck, know if you are the schmuck, and make your workplace a happy and productive one"--

The Schmuck in My Office

What's Going to Happen to All Those Empty Office Buildings?The broad shift to working from home during the pandemic may haunt the commercial real estate market for years to come, making it harder to fill vacant office buildings that were once brimming with tenants.

Those Empty Offices

Workers have proven they can function remotely, and they are demanding their employers keep the option of remote or hybrid work.Over the next few years, as tenants start to rethink space needs and their leases roll over, they'll go into better buildings, and the worse buildings will be in trouble.

Survival Of The Fittest

Older buildings that go dark will become expensive eyesores. A reduction in workers flooding into office districts each day will squeeze city wage tax revenues, mass transit ridership, and the local economy. Restaurants, boutiques, and businesses within walking distance of an office will lose the daily foot traffic that keeps them in the black.

The Likely Scenario

The demand for office space is unlikely to rebound to pre-COVID levels because workers want flexibility, says Wharton real estate professor Joseph Gyourko.

What’s Going to Happen to All Those Empty Office Buildings? - Knowledge@Wharton

Humans can only be productive for 35–40 hours per week. Working additional hours yields little more productivity and leads to burnout in the long-term. Additionally, the best work is often done early in the day while the mind is fresh.
A concentrated effort is when professional activities are performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that pushes your cognitive capabilities to their limit. These efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.

Concentrated Effort

Work in two sessions, each two hours long.<ul><li>Wear noise-cancelling headphones</li><li>No random internet surfing, email, or Slack</li><li>Phone is silenced and kept in a drawer</li></ul>Supporting your work<ul><li>On the desk: coffee, water, hand cream, notebook and pen (for writing down tasks)</li><li>Taped to the monitor: a sign that reads “Do Not Disturb from 8 a.m. – 12 p.m.”</li></ul>After the work sessions are over, check your email and text messages, just once or twice per day. Afternoons can be free for walks, company events, meetings, coffees, and chance conversations.

Four Hours of Deep Work

Routines don’t tap into willpower, resilience, or intrinsic motivation, leaving you more of those resources to spend on hard problems.One can walk in the morning sun, or do any kind of exercise that pumps up the lungs and heart. Writing and reading are also good options.

The Morning Routine

Adult life is stressful. If we’re not caring for others, working long hours, doing side projects, or just socializing, it can be hard to slow down and stay rested. Napping isn’t a part of the company culture in most organizations, but <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/23/smarter-living/take-naps-at-work-apologize-to-no-one.html">a 20-minute or (more rarely) 90-minute nap in the afternoon</a> provides a useful energy boost.

The Afternoon Nap

The goal is to completely shut down all work and work-related thinking until you come into the office the next day. No after-hours email, phone calls with team members, or late-night coding sessions. Deliberate rest from work is one of the most important ways to work effectively, as it allows your mind to recharge so you can perform well the next day:<ul><li>Take a final look at Slack</li><li>Take a final look at the inbox and messages.</li><li>Write down any new tasks into task lists</li><li>Skim every task in the task lists</li><li>Look at the next few days on the calendar</li><li>Make a plan for the next day</li><li>Check action lists in a notebook</li></ul>

Shutdown Ritual

There are few things as valuable to good mental performance as sleep.  Sleep is also a time where you do much of your best work. While you are asleep, The brain is doing maintenance, processing the events of the day, and even working on the problems you couldn’t solve during the day.

The Importance Of Sleep

<ul><li>Switch from always being available to being strategically available in order to best support your work.</li><li>Ensure the tech stuff stays on the desk. You can use a pen and paper.</li><li>Avoid long chains of messages on email and Slack, aiming to close the loop fast.</li></ul>

Tips For Intentional Collaboration And Achieving Optimal Productivity

<ul><li>Use the DND feature on your smartphone which only lets certain important numbers come through.</li><li>Give your work number to your family, caregivers and school faculty for emergencies. </li></ul>

What To Do For Emergencies

<ul><li>Inform your client about your usual availability hours.</li><li>Request to schedule phone calls in advance so that you can be available with preparation.</li><li>Be available during important product launches.</li></ul>

For People In Jobs Where Client Wants Availability

How do you work effectively in a collaborative workplace? I’ve found a way to balance concentration and conversation, and would like to share techniques and habits for being productive. When I first…

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A Misfit’s Guide to Navigating the Office - Guides

This is why you always get sucked into office drama

It's time to

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The Schmuck in My Office

What’s Going to Happen to All Those Empty Office Buildings? - Knowledge@Wharton

How to Concentrate in a Collaborative Workplace | by James Pothen | NYT Open

Bite-sized knowledgeto upgradeyour career

#officeculture

IDEAS ABOUT #officeculture

A Misfit’s Guide to Navigating the Office - Guides

This is why you always get sucked into office drama

It's time to

READ

LIKE

A PRO!

The Schmuck in My Office

What’s Going to Happen to All Those Empty Office Buildings? - Knowledge@Wharton

How to Concentrate in a Collaborative Workplace | by James Pothen | NYT Open

Bite-sized knowledge
to upgrade
your career