After working for more than 2 years, I've learned few lessons.
In my first company, which is semi-government:-
1) conflicts or the cannot-look-into-each-other-eyes, which I think is absolutely normal. besides, not everyone can work with each other. even families have conflicts.
2) slower pace of working speed, but somehow, things will still be done on time, albeit, in a more laidback manner.
3) more friendly colleagues than unfriendly ones. you get smiles or greetings from ppl working in different departments, or colleagues you are not close with.
I did not notice any office politics or back stabbing in my first company. i believe it exist, perhaps my position is harmless to them, and so, i was excused from being stabbed. ;)
My second company, which is a local-chinese-family-business company, it is almost culture shock for me. No! Not that everyone in this chinese company work harder, but...
1) conflict or cannot-look-into-each-other-eyes. ok, this is common.
2) faster pace of working speed, but...sometimes, certain parties just simply DID NOT want to get it done (and yep, it's their job!), and when problems or errors arises, the Master Tai Chi in them will appear!
3) cliques. you can differentiate very easily who is with who, and who is not with who.
4) more unfriendly colleagues than the friendlier ones. i based my judgement on all cases where I made the first move, that is to look at them, and smile first. some will just ignore you. some pretend you are not there. some make you feel like you owe them few millions ringgit and refuse to return to them. some friendlier colleagues said they are like that, and just tahan a bit and ignore them lah. anyway, i don't give them a shit as long as i get what i need to do done.
5) cold treatment by someone who didn't even know or never work with before! this is hilarious. i know there are a lot of cold wars going on among all the cliques, but sometimes, i get some "cold" stare from certain ppl, from certain cliques. especially from the cliques which one of my dept colleague is in. let's label her as A.
this useless fler is rather funny. recently she requested for an internal transfer to another dept, which my manager said yes without a second thought. A was very secretive with this request, but my manager called my in Terengganu right after she put in the request.
well, a lot of ppl were in the dark regarding her transfer, and she was so surprised when i ask her about it. she replied to me sarcastically, thinking that we will have trouble finding a replacement. what she didn't know is that, just one week ago, a lady came in for interview, and i did not tell A anything about it. the look on A face is...like what mastercard advert says - priceless - when she saw that lady came in for a second interview. initially, the lady came in for interview as an additional staff to the dept.
and now i have extra weight on my shoulder that my that A is leaving to another dept. she has been underperforming on purpose for quite a while now. my manager wanted to see improvements in my dept processes with this new lady, especially on delivering of the membership card to new applicants on time, and also membership renewal process.
we have been constantly coming up with new processes in order to smoothen the processes that we are currently doing, but the execution of new processes often let us down, due to A's attitude. the refusal to change or to accept ppl's order. she seems to close herself to changes, and rather continue with the uneffective routines that was set for her by the previous manager.
i made a shocking discovery few days ago when one of my colleague told me that when I first join this company, A asked her not to provide me with information as i will be basically taking over the previous manager's position, and they will be reporting to me. (i, in return, will report to another manager whom has been assigned to look after this dept!) saya budak baru belajar. kalau salah, tolong tunjukkan.
i was so amazed. my gf and manager too was not spared. she also told few other colleagues not to help my gf, who join this company at the same time as me. i was also told that A doesn't like the current manager that we are reporting to. for some reasons only known to her.
A has been applying for job in other companies recently. and unfortunately and unknowingly to her, she applied to one of the company which my another colleague's husband is one of the manager. he saw A's application and asked my colleague about her. lol... my that colleague has been constantly complaining about A to her husband, and she told her husband that she(A) is the one she has been talking about all these time. lol...
i really don't understand why some ppl are like this. it's really weird and dissappoint me. all i want to do is just to come to work, and get my job done. and i don't have to be friend with everyone, but of cos, i wouldn't want to have any foe! these ppl self-conditioned themselves that way and give ppl that kind of look like you owe them few hundred thousands of ringgit.
fortunately, there are a fairly good number of neutral and friendly colleagues over here, which i'm quite close to. i once took a swipe at a bitchy colleague and walked off an office event meeting. then, after a meeting, my other colleagues who are in the organizing committee called me to discuss certain issues which need my feedback. well, i wasn't surprised when they told me that they all don't get along well with that bitch too! i just don't understand why some ppl choose to be a pain in the ass.
a much more elder and wiser colleague told me that they simply just want to show their seniority, and want ppl to like polish their asses. well....any working place is full of these type of ppl.
without disrespect to those unmarried, all these ppl who are a pain in the ass in this company, majority of them are unmarried! unmarried ladies. or i'd like call them, the unwanted ones. their attitudes are very standard. they all have the same kind of attitudes. unfriendly. moody. like-you-owe-them-a-lot-of-money.
and when you pass them some task which they are supposed to do, again, they give you that kind of look like you purposely want to increase their work load. wtf. want to do, do lah. don't want to do, then don't do lah. if problems arise, i won't hesitate to point the finger. this particular unwanted one once gave me the kind of look, when I pass her some documents to process, changed her attitude right away, when i pass her other documents right in front of the MD. how pretentious can she be!
oh...i somehow felt i swayed a bit from my initial plan of writing this entry. i wanted to make it simple and in point form, but ended up writing an essay. lol...
anyway, all these are the ppl we will meet in the working world. working life is indeed not easy, as we have to deal with ppl with weird attitudes, like i like to say, "like you owe them few thousands of ringgit".
it can be tiring at times, but.... i'll never sway from my principle...that is to get my job done and mind my own business. i know there are a lot of gossips and rumours going around, whether it's about me or not...i don't give a shit...i might have been stabbed at the back...but so far...i know how is my performance...and as long as I keep on doing what is right...i don't give a shit....
