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How to Avoid Gossip and Stay Popular
Nealeigh Mitchell | Excelle
Gossip is and will always be a part of the work environment. Whether it’s during a quick chat over a morning cup of coffee or a marathon session at happy hour, we’ve all started or repeated a rumor about someone in their absence.
In fact, employees gossip up to sixty-five hours a year at work, according to a July 2002 survey by Equisys. That’s a lot of time wasted around the water cooler.
Counterproductive gossip and its contagious effects drain people’s time and energy, destroy morale, and stifle creativity.
Unfortunately, the rise of social media and interoffice technology is making it easier to start a rumor. You don’t even need to rally an audience. A harmless IM can spread around the office like wildfire and have serious consequences. But it’s not always so innocent. Some people plant rumors just to sully someone’s reputation and get ahead.
So what are you to do? Can you get ahead without joining the conversation? Is it so wrong to want to feel included, even if it comes at another’s expense? Besides, if it’s not her, it could be me, right? Wrong. You can survive and thrive without maligning relationships and alienating others.
Here’s how to deal with gossip without crippling your career.
babylove
about 1 year ago
1856 comments
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ypsanders
over 2 years ago
2 comments
You know, one of the 1st things I noticed was that all the people in the picture were Asian, and I thought that was not right. I am a white, middle-aged woman, and believe me, people gossip in the office, no matter what their race or sex is! Next time you fell the need to "represent your diverse user base", try to include a mix of races and both male and female...because men gossip, too, Laur!!!
snackysnacks
almost 3 years ago
6 comments
why was it a bad call on to post a picture of all asian people? i don't think it's strange at all. asians are a part of the work force too. if it were a group of white people gossiping do you think that someone would be equally offended? in your attempt to be politically correct, you are in fact admitting that you are being racist and implying the notion that asian women gossip a lot. should it have been a picture of gossiping animals instead?
editor
almost 3 years ago
12 comments
Thanks everyone for your comments! Stewartpp08 — This photo choice was simply in the interest of representing our diverse user base (you'll notice the variety of ethnic groups portrayed all across the site). There were no undertones whatsoever.
stewartpp08
almost 3 years ago
2 comments
So, this probably wasn't on purpose by monster but bad call on the picture of all Asian people for the column about gossip. . .strange?????
Laur
almost 3 years ago
52 comments
McKenna -- this is a site for women, right? So wouldn't the reader most likely be female?
mckenna
almost 3 years ago
2 comments
Why, under "If you're the gossip" does it refer to "water-cooler girl" as the gossip. I know more men that talk crap about women than women do about each other.
Shame on the author.
Account Removed
almost 3 years ago
I don't want to be "popular" at work. I want to be respected and liked, but popular puts the "Mean Girls" spin on it.