Discussion:Look Busy at Work Without Really Working

I edited the article to remove shadier practices, and ones that read more like a joke. I also changed the intro to emphasize that this should only be done - and will only work - when you have a micro-managing, insensible tyrant of a boss.

"Your boss or manager walks by, expresses displeasure at the fact that you're not doing anything, and assigns you to an unpleasant, and really unnecessary task because they don't like seeing you relax (even though you earned it by finishing your assignment faster, right?)"

It takes a seriously deranged DIMWIT to write something like this. And then the same dimwit wonders why they got fired, or why they don't get raises or promotions. If you got caught by your boss twiddling your thumbs its because you were doing -squat- in exchange for your salary. You should have ASKED what else needs to be done, not wait around like a braindead vegetable to see if anyone tells you what else needs to be done.

Read Dale Carnegie. You are only entitled to get paid what you are worth, and people who follow the kind of advice this post gives are worth squat to an employer. These are also the ones who later complain about how the big, greedy Wall Street corporations ruined their lives, made them lose their homes, made them go bankrupt after running up credit cards to support a lifestyle way over their means, etc.

There's only one way to describe people like this: MEDIOCRE NIMRODS!

I agree completely with 201.27.190.88. Instead of finding ways to "look" busy, try being busy. Do more than what your job description requires. Find things to do that make your job more challenging...that make you a more desirable and unique employee. Make yourself more of an asset to your company. They won't fire you if they can't live without you. Don't give them a reason to get rid of you. I love the phrase MEDIOCRE NIMROD.

Or, for about half the effort, stress and brain power you could actually DO YOUR JOB.

How did this articel get FA. Yes its well written but it just plan worthless. Its people like this that make the USA look lazy to other countries when in fact there are lots of people like me that work our a$$ off daily.

Aggreed with the last two posts.

This article is a joke and something like this should be taken off the web. If you finish your work early find something else to do or ask for more work.

What kind of message are sending to our youth? Its ok to be lazy and look busy? And, on top of that the article explains ways to trick bosses and co-workers into thinking you actually are busy... laugh and half.

If I could take anything from this waste of web space I will use the information to actually look for these "red flags" in my employees and co-workers.

An alternative to all of this is to take a job you really enjoy doing. It's hard to beat employment that you look forward to each day. Can't find one like that? How about figuring a way to create a business around what you like doing? Even if you think of yourself as a layabout, some of the most brilliant products ever invented (the Internet springs immediately to mind) were born of convenience or sheer laziness, not necessity.

Work is work. If you like your work, chances are good that you will shine at it. It will be a worthwhile expenditure of your time. If you don't like your work- especially if you don't like it so much that you scheme to avoid doing it- you really should be doing something else. Not for your employer's sake, but for your own.

Seriously, the only possession you cannot afford to waste is your time because you will never get it back. It is hard to think of a greater waste of time than accepting money for doing something you yourself feel is such a waste of your time.

Why are American jobs being sent to overseas assignments? Because writers and users of this article are too lazy or incompetent to do their jobs and look for ways to "fool the boss". A competent and efficient worker will be recognized and rewarded. If it is a "bad boss" realize that the boss also has a boss. Go to the Manager and express your views. What you make of your life, job and career is up to you. If you are not participating in a cure to a problem, you are a part of the problem!

This article was probably written on company time; while the author was 'appearing' to be busy on their latest task. I work with a bunch of slackers like this article describes and it really gripes my A$$ that this actually happens and the people who are doing it are taking up valuable company resources that could be used to reward the other people in the same company that are actually DOING THEIR JOB! The author probably voted for Obama too.

I think this article is representative of most of the twitter / facebook / youtube narcisistic generation of 18 to 30 year olds out there right now.

People so concerned about creating a promoting an image and gathering a cadre of 'friends' on these sad social-networking websites.

I am 42 years old and most of the people i meet in their 20s make me sick. This article is right on the money for most of their age group's mindset.

Great article!! Learned a lot!!

There is the option of course to take a tommy gun into work and mow the tyrant down j

You're fired!

To support the above statement on the narcissistic generation of 18 to 30 yr olds,

I recently took some classes at a local community college. The cheating that goes on is unbelievable and looked at by this generation as a normal everyday thing to do to get by, instead of working hard to obtain the knowledge, and thus pass the class.

They walk around campus with a phone GLUED to their ear.

I witnessed some of the most ignorant clueless people getting good grades in difficult classes like Anatomy and Physiology.

Some of these American citizens can barely speak the English language and damn sure can't write it with any cohesion.

As a member of the 18 to 30 year old group (21 years old) I also see what yall are talking about. I hate it when I see all these people my age cheating and getting good grades when I work hard on my own and struggle. I also see the people walking around with the cell phone glued to their ear.

My wife makes fun of me all the time becuase I remind her of a griping old man. I talk like one, I work like one, I even dress like one. I wish I was born 50 years ago so I could hurry up and be old now. I would fit in.

I agree with most of the posters, (I'm 42 myself). However, I have worked at places where if you work too hard, either your coworkers will hate you and band against you, or, your boss will think you're after his job and start looking for ways to make your life miserable or fire you. I've had coworkers come up to me and tell me to slow down "or else", and had coworkers switch shifts so they dont look so bad next to me... In these cases, it's either get a new job or waste some time. I prefer to get a new job. In todays job market, that's not a reasonable option for me though. So yeah this article is helpful, and as the poster says, only waste time if you've already beat out your coworkers. I'd go another step and say only use this articles advice if you absolutely have to. There's nothing that makes the day go longer and drag on like not working hard. That's the thing that really bothers me, when the slow working lazy bastards come up to me and say "Man, the day sure is moving slow!" I'm thinking like "Do some fing work and it wont be so slow"...

Dan K

Play a computer game with a "Boss Key"...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boss_key

...Games from the 80s and early 90s used to always have these, especially Sierra games. Not sure why these are no longer integrated into computer games. Even if they weren't used it was always a great novelty.

Or...you could totally just use ALT-TAB to switch quickly between non-work related stuff and work related stuff. :-D Always does the charm for me and....your hands are on the keyboard so it looks like you're just typing! Good luck!

I had a job in a kitchen a long time ago, where I had a "problem boss" who would make such techniques necessary and for whom the tricks would work. I did my job. I was not "slacking" or "cheating". I got the work done when it needed to be done, yet he was always on my ass to work harder and faster. I tried that, and when I'd done all the work he had for me, he got on my ass for not doing anything. Show initiative! Find stuff to do! I did, and he came down on me for doing stuff he hadn't told me to do (consistency is not typically a virtue of the problem boss). Given that I couldn't quit and go somewhere else, my only choice was to find whatever course of action kept me in the *least* trouble.

My key solution: take smaller steps. Seriously. I shortened my stride by a few inches, and it always looked to him like I was rushing around trying to keep up -- and "therefore" I was working hard. As with many of the tricks in this article, it shouldn't work, and would neither work nor be necessary if he had been a good boss. This article isn't about good jobs under good bosses.

Trying to minimize the amount he came down on me didn't work forever, of course. Eventually, he fired me, telling me that his hands were tied and he was firing me on instruction from his boss (conveniently out of town). I'm pretty sure he told her that I quit.

This person makes a fine ambassador for Generation-Y. In fact, so does the person (or people) at wikiHow that made this a Featured Article.

This is crazy, it's easier to actually work than try to find a way out of it. Try asking mgt. for more work.

I only became aware of two things reading this article: that whoever wrote it is extremely lazy and probably has a monotonous job. I agree with the posters who said 'ask for more work' or actually try to be busy. Work is more about just doing what you're told. Thanks for letting me know you have a boring job! The sad part is, you'll probably always have a boring job with that attitude!

I tend to walk around with papers in my hands and also follow George from Seinfeld's tip of always looking stressed hahahah.

Oh come on folks! I loved this article because I didn't take it seriously. I work for a company that for many years has bred this kind of work ethic. As a person who cannot stand idle time at work and is a constant instigator of change and process improvement, I thought the article was hilarious. In fact, I think they forgot another hot tip: 'Frequently use the statement "I'm swamped" with an exasperating tone in your voice'

You do this stuff and you are lying to your company. I've fired someone for misuse of company resources when they tried to employ some of these lies. This is a ridiculous article and you should be ashamed that you wasted your company's time by writing it!

Wow with the long list of comments I wonder if this will be helpful. I must say this article is right on. I was touted as the hardest working employee for a company by the owner. They bragged to my face that they changed me to salary because I love to work so hard (waaaay extra ton more than my share that no one else would do) and now they don't have to worry about overtime. A day before my year to get vacation they fired me. They had been setting me up for a few weeks, and though they loved the quality and quanity of my work I didn't fit the new image they wanted for the store. I was fired unfairly replaced within 2 days. My position was the only one of its kind and very complex.

If this article offends you than you have no real idea about working for people who don't care about their business first they care about their ego. You have no idea the pain and waste they cause people who just wanted to show up and produce to the best of their ability. This owner along with my immediate boss told me once in hearty agreement that I needed to learn how to play the game.

If you are in this situation and you relate don't be afriad to follow this article to help yourself. Be complete and find your way to a better situation because this is just a bandaid.

Also I forgot to add that I was so known for getting the job done people would lay blame on me for fun. The owner knew it wasn't true and would still ask me to fix every damn thing. Another thing I was the only person who couldn't eat lunch in the building, Why? Cause when he saw me it was like Christmas to him. He'd drill me about his list of things which were always done or being handled so then he would come up with a list of a hundred more things he thought I was Wonderwoman cuase I didn't pass out from all his constant lunatic demands. Be careful of the pedastals.

Is that NZ Post step a joke?

Makes me sick.

--Hardworker

"Also I forgot to add that I was so known for getting the job done people would lay blame on me for fun. The owner knew it wasn't true and would still ask me to fix every damn thing. Another thing I was the only person who couldn't eat lunch in the building, Why? Cause when he saw me it was like Christmas to him. He'd drill me about his list of things which were always done or being handled so then he would come up with a list of a hundred more things he thought I was Wonderwoman cuase I didn't pass out from all his constant lunatic demands. Be careful of the pedastals."

So every employer is like this? I doubt it. You certainly weren't hailed for your grammar or spelling.

AWESOME WIN!!!!1

This is garbage. The State of Georgia is an "At Will" state, and we're in a tough economy. This article espouses "Beavis and Butthead" thinking, rather than initiative and creativity. Shame on you.

I finally took a short assignment in just such a place, where people thought it was work to attend a meeting, or write an e-mail. The more meetings, the more e-mail, the more work. I sat down and started resolving problems, one at a time...the cost to the company of an incompetent workforce far exceeds the lost productivity, as we have plenty of people and can always pay someone else to do whatever it is. The true cost is the damage these people do to the product or the reputation. This is what I think of when I drive by the local General Motors carlot and see a batch of $38,000 vehicles with more engineering time and money in the service diagnostics than I had in my first car, which I saved up a whole paycheck to buy. Thank God we have finally pulled the plug, now can we use the factories for someone who wants to do the work?

Peter principle in action. The author left off one point, another way to look busy without really doing any work is to write a wiki-how on how to be lazy at someone else's expense.

this companies make a hell lot of money out of us. this attcle is greate, a man has to relax sometimes.

Rename the article "How to Put Up with a Dead-End Job" because it's obviously causing confusion and anger among the people (and/or tools) with real (and/or fulfilling) jobs.

With all the finger pointing about time wasters, most of these posts are during "normal business hours", right? Shouldn't we all be working? Maybe it's not just those darn kids...

I think we all need to take this article a little less seriously. Do all of you REALLY work that hard? Come on, life is too short, be a little more carefree.

I always walk around holding a piece of paper. THis makes you look busy.

It's actually more work to look busy than to be busy. This is more like a Seinfeld type of scheme. In fact, I believe there's an episode where George wants to achieve this.

The advice of this article is funny, but stupid. Why does anyone WANT to look mediocre? If you work AS SLOW as everyone else in your corporate office, why would any intelligent employer want to promote you?? If you really DO work where everyone is slow, and you work under a moron manager who doesn't recognize talent, then YOU are an idiot if you continue working there. If you like the company, and want to stay there, and want to make more money, and want to be more appreciated, and drive a nicer car, then go the extra mile and exceed their expectations. And besides being faster, there is no mention of doing a BETTER JOB than your office mates. If you are so fast and efficient, why not discover a better way of doing things. Then you will (should be) noticed by your boss's boss, who might eventually promote you above your idiot / blind / mediocre / slacker manager. Find a way for your company to make more $$$$, and they will reward you.

Recommend this article for deletion as soon as possible. It is demeaning and dishonest to even consider doing less than your best in any aspect of life, and especially in the workplace. This article has neither merit nor fact, and damages the reputation of wikiHow in intent and practice. It is insulting, irreputable and immature; should be speedily removed.

Hi. One of my colleagues found this article. We spent the rest of the week discussing it. Nice article. I am on my way to polish my skills to the level when I will be able to add some useful information. Articles like this make Internet worth surfing.

Interesting to see how many people who disliked this article actually:

a) found the time to read it considering they are so busy and...

b) found even more time to dedicate writing scathing comments about it....

You article is being written by someone who has a lack of desire to be better (in general). If you finish your work first, shouldn't you be wondering how you can help others to accomplish their task? If you got your work done before everyone else, then you should offer to help lighten the load for someone who is behind. This is real leadership. For those who "Don't Give a Shit" about the company are the ones who needs articles like the one your guy wrote. They are the "losers" in life as they will never be recognized by true "Winners". I would never want someone who just does their own task and not care about the overall picture and success of the company. Slackers are the ones who hold back companies from reaching the true potential success of that organization. Your article is what creates mediocrity. Mediocre is never good enough!!

i think it was just suppoesd to be a 'fun' page....

i doubt a 'true winner' would have any difficult in seeing that...

Yeah, I loved this article! It was fun to read.

Would I employ this person, however?

no.

For starters @ 68.10.197.146

You are a terrible person who doesn't deserve the right to be on the internet.

Just because someone may not speak English 100% well (hell, I'm sure you and your "whitest" of friends do not even have a proper grasp on the language) does not make them a "cheater". I spend 90% of my class time either texting on my cell phone, working on non-class related activites (like budgeting my month) or on my laptop instant messaging friends asking what they would like to do after class and yet I still manage to get A's and B's in all of my classes. The reason is not because I cheat but because I have INTELLIGENCE. These "ignorant clueless people" as you put it are probably just ALOT SMARTER THEN YOU, I can infer this as your assumption on them CHEATING ON TESTS was based on them NOT SPEAKING ENGLISH (If you can't speak the language, how can someone who DOES give you the answer?).

Same goes for the workplace, and now on to the rant about the article.

I can respect underappreciation, as a 22 year old in an agency where the average age is 47 and more then 60% of the workforce has Doctorates (whilst I am still working on my Masters) I am constantly being underestimated with what work I can do, given "monthly" tasks I can complete in a matter of days (if not hours). In the past I was met with discouragement when submitting my completed tasks early and more professional then expected under the guise of "Showing off" or even accused of "cheating" and I even have had some of my work ripped off by more senior members of the agency... My response however was not to deceive my employer into the false sense of "looking like I am busy" but actaully to CONFRONT my boss(es) and inform them of the issues that I was facing. After a few meeting in which my salary, job description, and expected tasks were discussed, an understanding was reached that while I may be able to outpreform my "required" duties, my age, education, and length of employement simply limited my growth potential at the time, as a result, if I complete my assigned tasks earlier and more efficeint, then I have the choice to either start other projects early or spend the time how I best fit while at the work place (as a matter of fact I am writing this comment at my place of work without any fear of my boss over my shoulder as we have established a good level of trust). As a matter of fact, I don't even have to be done with the task before I spend my time as I choose, as long as I have the task completed by the end date.

And thats what this all comes down to... Trust. It does not matter how old you are, where you work, or any other factors. If your boss can trust you to get the work, that they are paying you to do, done on time then whatever happens inbetween is entirely up to you. If you cannot be trusted to get the work done right by the time alloted, then you don't need a list of ways to look busy, you need a list of lower paying jobs you qualify for.

Also, #14 has NOTHING to do with the intent of the article. As I see it, being an article about how one completes work faster then others, it should not end with the suggestion of NOT doing work by placing your personal workload onto a COWORKER by means of fearmongering... It is pathetic and disgusting.

Before I start this article. Let me describe myself. I am a worker. I am not lazy. I always WANT to be busy. My bosses have always loved me and many times have said that I work too hard and I need to lighten up. That's just the way I was raised. My parents are workers, my grandparents are workers and I have always surrounded myself with other "go-getters". I have the job I have now out of necessity. I moved across the country after college and took the first well paying job I found. It was the beginning of the recession we are currently in so many places were already cutting staff, not hiring. The first day of my job I was given a folder that described what my immediate and long term tasks were. I read the list and couldn't imagine it taking more than a day to do everything. I finished half the list THE FIRST DAY. Even while I was doing the assigned work, I wasn't being challenged mentally and I was still bored. I was so bored that I cried all the way home. I didn't want to be bored. I hated it. It was torture. But, having just spent my savings moving across the country and paying my first month's rent/deposit; I needed money to live though so I stuck with it.

The work never got harder no matter how many times I asked for extra assignments. Put out a newsletter? No problem. Arrange travel for the entire department? Sure. I do that for my friends anyway (true statement).

Needless to say, I do most of the stuff described in this article. Not because I am lazy but because I literally have NOTHING to do at work. When I started working here a year and a half ago, I would finish a task and then ask for more work immediately. I work fast and efficiently and my boss both loves and hates this fact. He loves that I get everything done quickly (and better than he had expected) but doesn't want me to pester him with requests that basically mean, "I'm bored". About 2 months into my employment, he finally told me "You know. If you don't have anything to do every second. That's okay. You can take breaks, go online, take an early lunch, or just sit there. You already do more than asked." No joke. He does the same thing though. Of course, I am his assistant so if he has nothing to do then I can't really do anything to assist. It's the industry we are in. It promotes this kind of behavior. I still don't want to just sit here and look bored or lazy so I do still try to look like I'm doing work. I started my job with about 20 regular tasks (which the previous assistant apparently had trouble completing in a timely manner) and now I have a list of 150 things that I do on a REGULAR basis. I keep adding things but it still doesn't entertain me long enough. I could do my entire job and the extra tasks I take on in less than an hour each day, but I am stuck at work for 9 hours instead. What to do, what to do?

So don't assume that people who NEED to entertain themselves at work are lazy. Sometimes those are just the cards that are dealt.

Before I typed this up on company time, I finished reconciling accounts for February even though it isn't due or expected for another 2 weeks. I am not lazy, just underutilized.

I search for jobs all the time but nothing is paying well enough right now to live on. But believe me, as soon as this state's economy picks back up I am hightailing it out of here. Maybe I will try to get a job like one my friends. They are always complaining about how busy they are.

Goddammit who is going to support me in my retirement?

GET tO WORK !!