Tagged: office life

Microsoft Word to Your Mother 6

Reinventing the Word Processor

As a writer, I spend a lot of time using a word processor, specifically Microsoft Word. For the most part, word processing software hasn’t changed much since the early days of Windows. In some...

Back to the Office 3

Going Back to Work

I’m going back to work after a couple of months of unemployment, and while I’m still looking forward to the weekend, it’s good to feel productive again. It’s going to be an interesting experience,...

Smokey the Bear in "Office Space" 7

There Will Be Bureaucracy

To those who decry government inefficiency, I’ll see your DMV and raise you a cable guy. Or a tech support voicemail system. Or how about a stack of TPS reports with outdated cover sheets?...

My Documents Folder 2

Analog Thinking in a Digital Age

I noticed it first in an office setting: people who insist in emailing files even when there’s a networked drive available. It’s a much better use of time and brainpower to leave the file...

Playing Office Monopoly 1

Playing Office

Are you working. Or are you playing office? There are an awful lot of office workers out there who “play office”, like a little kid imitating her parents. This is a subtle and pernicious...

Fax Machine Icon 2

Death and Faxes

Fax machines are a fascinating anachronism. A modem fax machine is just a low-quality scanner and a dial-up modem. So why do faxes persist, when modems have gone the way of the dodo? Not...

Yellowstone Office Park 2

Hidden Sights in an Office Park

The other day I took a walk. After a tough morning, I needed to get out of the office. I grabbed an apple and started walking around the little office park where my building...

Playing Office Monopoly 3

Improv at the Workplace

In improvisational comedy (“improv”), the cardinal rule is “yes and“. Each comedian on stage builds on the previous performer’s idea. Using this method, you can take any simple situation and turn it in to...

Office Space II: Revenge of the Mondays 3

Workplace Adventures: Mistakes and TPS Reports

There’s a telling scene in the movie Office Space, where the boss chews Peter Gibbons out for not put the proper coversheet on his TPS report. A moment later, a second boss comes along...

Pabst Red Ribbon logo 4

5 Things Nobody Cares About

When it comes to marketing, sales and advertising, there is but one cardinal rule: nobody cares about you. It’s harsh, but it’s true. And yet, so many people forget it. If you’re working somewhere...