Caught Slacking at Work
Caught Slacking at Work
Q. Last week, my boss walked by my desk while I was on my personal Facebook. I’m pretty sure he saw what I was doing. Should I apologize and address the issue? Is it better to pretend it didn’t happen? It was only a few minutes.A.
The range of complaints I have heard from managers about what they have seen employees doing online while at work ranges from your situation of personal social media updates, to shopping, dating websites, and the extreme of watching a movie. All of it is very annoying to managers who feel like they have children around trying to hide things (poorly) from their parents.
The wealth of non-work activity to be involved with throughout the day has always been there, and technology has made it so much easier to find alternatives to occupy your time. Keeping up with your friends via social media throughout the day is tempting, and it will not only get in the way of your responsibilities on the job, it can be a career derailer. You may think it’s only a minute, but managers believe that what they saw is going on consistently when they are not around to see it.
Many employees check their personal social media accounts, the scores, the news, shopping sites throughout the day, and though you may think it is acceptable, it’s not. Employees know companies can monitor their screen activity, and most companies don’t. But would your activity change if you thought it was being viewed or reviewed? So the best advice is stop before you get found out. And if it’s too late for that and your screen doesn’t close quickly enough? Some choices to consider include:
- Pretend it never happened. Many employees check their social media accounts throughout the day, so the chances are you are not the first person to get caught. If your boss does not bring it up, then maybe it was not a big deal. And tell yourself you won’t do it again. What are the chances this is accurate?
- Apologize for whatever you were doing online, and commit to your manager that it will not happen again. Managers appreciate honesty, and as painful as this might be, it’s time to clean the slate. You may open the door to a more meaningful conversation about your job, how you are doing, and if there are other areas that might interest you.
Social media is incredibly tempting, so here are some tips on how to stay out of trouble while catching up on your favorite accounts.
- Check social media during your lunch break, and not at your desk. it is perfectly appropriate to use your time to catch up on social media, or other online activity.
- Do not log into your social media accounts in the morning. Many employees habitually open social media websites when they get to their desks first thing in the morning—reopening the tab to check up on their accounts. Avoid the temptation all together and do not sign in.
- Do not switch to using your phone as an alternative. It is just as obvious as having it open on your computer.
Focus on your work. If you are bored, figure out why. What else can you be doing that might be challenging, and of value to the organization. Alternate great projects with more tedious work. Online activity and social media tempts many employees. To avoid being caught, prevent it from happening; Facebook can wait.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com