What gets you through the work day?

[Capn Flukie]

Unless you have a particularly exciting job, what helps you get through the boring, unexciting, tedious, yawn-inducing parts of your workday?

I do a lot of different things at my job, webmaster, multimedia specialist, book room attendant, cashier, grunt.

I find making my co-workers, and the students that come into the bookstore, smile a little bit helps me get through the otherwise boring tasks that I have to do throughout the workday. The pay just isn't enough.

Maybe it's small talk about the weather or how ridiculously priced all the snacks are, and the obscenely overpriced textbooks, at the store helps connect me to them. I was a student there once, so I can relate to what they are going through, so that helps.

What do you do to get through? Make your co-workers laugh? Listen to music? Sneak in some games? Nothing?

Or just do your job, without any 'entertainment'?

Hmmm?

 

[Kestra]

I bug a certain BBS member when I'm at work and bored or stressed. Or I'll surf some website and get some other "chores" done so I'm still being productive but taking a break from my current task.

 

[RJDiogenes]

My current job is pretty much all out from start to finish, so I don't have to worry about boredom. Clock watching is what gets me through the day. Oh, and the satisfaction of helping people.

 

[Trippy]

My day is divided into four 75 minute blocks of time, with a 45 minute break halfway through. I find it pretty easy getting through each 75 miniute block (or class) because it goes pretty fast. I have new students every 75 minutes, so that keeps the day interesting. Then I have lunch to look foward to, chatting and eating with my fellow English teachers. One of the 75 minutes chunks of time, I don't have students, and I can spend the time here if I want to, or listening to my iPod while I do some marking, etc.

My day goes super fast! And my students always manage to entertain me, whether they mean to be funny or not

 

[TheBrew]

Post here mostly. I just got moved to a new position where there are about 5 tasks that I could do that all take at the most 10 minutes of work. And it has been so slow that a workorder comes in maybe once an hour.

 

[Holdfast]

My job's weird - sometimes it's really busy, sometimes it's slow and I'm just gossiping with co-workers while pretending to catch up with paperwork I don't bother doing. If it's really quiet, I go out for a bite to eat at a cafe or whatever. Checking the markets and the news is good for killing a bit of time too. If it happens to be an irritatingly busy rather "good busy" sort of day, I metaphorically "lie back and think of the money".

 

[KimMH]

heaven help me - you guys! and TNZ - it's like watching a trainwreck all the time!

 

[Deckerd]

trekBBS

 

[Danoz]

What a great idea for a thread.

BTW, it sounds like you and I have similar jobs. I am also a webmaster, multimedia person, photographer, all-of-the-above-for-nonprofit kind of guy. As a result my days are usually interesting though filled (mostly) with the tedious admin of running an interactive website/interview series etc.

Getting through the day for me usually involves interacting with colleagues, enjoying jobs, sharing news etc.

 

[Kommander]

I'm unemployed, but at my most recent job (data entry), I got through the day with a combination of audio books and being dead inside.

 

[Lindley]

When I have a programming or software design puzzle which I know how to solve, the day flies by.

When I don't know how to solve the puzzle, I just end up getting really frustrated, and the day takes forever.

When I'm stuck with some repetitive, boring task, the day takes really long.....until I figure out how to program something to automate it for me.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Sometimes I raise the drawbridge during rush hour.

 

[Stephen!]

Unless you have a particularly exciting job, what helps you get through the boring, unexciting, tedious, yawn-inducing parts of your workday?

Coffee

It definitely kept me sane while doing Data Entry Work.

I was the youngest in my department @ 23 yrs old. But the various "banter" between the older adults was quite amusing at times.

 

[Warp Coil]

My day can vary from somewhat busy to complete boredom. It tends to switch back and forth quite randomly. When things are quiet, I surf the web quite a bit - check my email, facebook, the TrekBBS and various other sites. I'll engage in some conversation with co-workers (the topics can vary wildly).

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

It used to be soda pop and lunch...now I've cut back on soft drinks and I usually bring my lunch which gets boring.

That just leaves Trek BBS.

 

[auntiehill]

Soda pop, the BBS, and the knowledge that my work hours keep getting cut---it makes me appreciate the few days that I actually CAN work.

 

[Q2UnME]

With the end date of my employment with my current company rapidly approaching it's end date, it's nothing but shear will power that get's me through the day. Most everyone here is already in "screw it" mode so moral is really, really low. It's tiresome and draining. Less than 4 more months then off to find a new job (and a new house, in a new city, with no friends... blah...)

Q2

 

[melancholymecha]

would data entry be a good job for someone who has social anxiety? also is a lot of computer knowledge required?

 

[Stephen!]

would data entry be a good job for someone who has social anxiety? also is a lot of computer knowledge required?

It depends on the job really. Some are entirely data entry. Others involve other duties, as well, such as answering telephones.

The Data Entry job that I did didn't involve a lot of computer knowledge. Just typing skills. It was basically just a large stack of paper with lots of numbers that needed to be entered onto the new system.

 

[melancholymecha]

^thanks, I might be visiting vocational rehabilitation services this year (hopefully, unless they placed me at the back end of the wait list) and I have no idea what they can find for someone with social anxiety without too many skills or job experience.