Noisy Coworkers: 5 Ways To Deal With It
Everyone encounters noisy coworkers in their jobs, at some point in time. We try to handle these people by asking them nicely to be quiet, but this doesn't always work. Other times, we may enlist the help of others in our quest. By trying only a few easy things, we can better deal with our noisy coworkers.
Wear Headphones - headphones that provide sound canceling are better, but are costly. If you want the low cost options, you can go for low-tech options. In-ear buds, over-ear headphones help you by covering either your ears or the ear passage so that you filter out interruptions. You can try music for lowering your stress levels or for helping you to focus , but remember music with lyrics may distract you.
Purchase a white noise machine. You will find a wide variety of white noise products to assist you in attaining speech privacy in your open office. They run the gamut from quite inexpensive CD's which loop a white noise track, to premium multi-channel machines which can treat the whole office or even an entire building. The optimal solution for you is dependent upon how big an area you wish to treat. Locate a quiet area for yourself. The majority of offices will have conference rooms which aren't in use, and which make a nice place for you, when you have to remove yourself from distracting office noises and concentrate on your work.
Discuss your concerns in a meeting with your supervisor, offering constructive suggestions-The creation of a team or office-wide noisy management policy can often be quite effective and helpful. However, be careful to avoid using the meeting to vent about your coworkers, as this is not the right forum for this and it may cost you some credibility. Remember: you're concerned for the team and attempting to make the work environment more productive and comfortable for all. Complaining can make the situation sound like a personal problem.
Share any worries with noisy coworkers--this may be hard, and must clearly be thought out well. Ask to talk to the noisy coworker privately and be candid. Do not hint, but remain diplomatic. After all, you've got to work with this coworker. Above all, do not engage in the "backdoor approach" of making snide comments in front of other members of the team. Such a passive-aggressive move typically only offends the noisy coworkers and is rarely effective in the end.
Above all, don't just sit there and grit your teeth. There's more to the "tools of the trade" than just a computer and a telephone. Your environment and workspace are part of the equation. Addressing open office speech privacy concerns early can save you a lot of stress!
We all have to deal with noisy coworkers from time to time. Sometimes you just have to ask politely. Other times you have to try something different. Here are some things you can try. Wearing headphones may be an option for you. They can be just something to listen to music with or more advanced sound masking headphones. If wearing headphones isn't practical, maybe a personal white noise machine will work. It can be as simple as putting a CD in a CD player to get speech privacy. Maybe you will have to take the problem to a higher level, but make sure you do something.
Published December 1st, 2008
