We all do it at work …. go on facebook, check the gossip sites, and just randomly surf. Let’s admit that we do it a lot and through out the day. And please do not give me the excuse that you are on facebook all day because you are “networking” and “getting ideas”. The biggest draw of facebook is knowing what your friends/ acquaintances are doing or creeping.
Some employers really frown upon their staff wasting company time on the internet. All employees should be busy working, working, working. God forbid anyone would be able to multitask or bring their personal lives into the workplace. Many companies have started banning facebook at work, Time-wasting staff given a slap in Facebook siting the mysterious “Internet Usage Policy”. You know I read that policy and I thought it meant, no porn at work and don’t download stuff. They can’t seriously expect me NOT to go to a non-work related site or check my hotmail account?
As such, if you work for one of those stuffy companies or you hate your job so much you actually refused to do any work, I’ve got a few secrets for you that I have learned over the years.
- Above all be discreet – Most bosses know you are surfing the net, but as long as you don’t flaunt it they will let it slide. They are doing it themselves and only bust your balls if (1) they are psychos, in which case this won’t help you as they probably spy on you anyways. (2) Their boss caught YOU surfing and they got their balls busted over the fact that you are not working.
- Hide things in our Outlook preview pane – I learned this one at my first job. I had a co-worker who always looked extremely busy and engrossed in his emails. I use to think to myself, “wow he must get a lot of emails,” until one day I passed by his desk and noticed that he was actually reading some car website and not email, but he had adjusted the size of the website to fit the frame of his email preview pane! Genius I tell you! Especially if people can not see your screen when they are walking by.
- Look frustrated/pissed off – Frown at your computer with the utmost frustration. Growl at your computer and type in an angry manner. Run your hands through your hair, hold your head in your hands. Start desperately searching through all the papers on your desk. Walk really fast with papers in your hand. After an hour of this, people will start saying to you “you must be real busy today”. You will probably not be asked to do anything if you do this all day which shall leave your with more time to surf the net or look for a new job.
- Access Banned sites by using a proxy site/url – Significant Figures does an excellent job of explain how this works & where to find proxy sites, so I won’t reinvent the wheel here.
Use WorkFriendly – Now I didn’t know about this one. Everyones seen that “Boss Panic” Button that workopolis.com has, it is total shit. Whose computer screen looks like that? But Sibebits recently did a post on How to Fool Your Employers on NSFW Sites, which introduced me to WorkFriendly.
Tags: facebook at work, nsfw sites, survival tips for working, Time-wasting staff given a slap in Facebook, workfriendly, working
December 3, 2007 at 3:11 am
If you have a savvy IT department, no amount of “discretion” can hide what you’re really doing. When you’re boss discovers that 25% of the company bandwidth is being expended on Facebook etc staff will only too quickly discover the meaning of the phrase “out on your ear”
db
December 3, 2007 at 10:17 am
Very true! If your company has a good IT staff and a strict internet usage policy – you will want to respect it.
I find most agencies encourage you to be on the internet as long as it is work related and you’re getting your work done! They do not mind if you read industry blogs, magazines or troll on competitors sites.
December 3, 2007 at 12:25 pm
I heard about a guy who was told he’d have to upgrade his company broadband at a cost of an extra $12000 per year. He discovered that blocking Facebook alone would cut usage to well below the spend of his original bandwidth he pulled the plug on his employees.
db
December 3, 2007 at 11:22 pm
HA HA HA. That’s a lot of bored/disgruntled workers right there.
December 30, 2007 at 11:01 pm
My company blocks MySpace, etc (no idea about facebook, since I don’t use it). Also, due to federal laws (Sarbanes Oxley, etc), ALL personal email is blocked. Fun fun fun!
May 6, 2008 at 10:17 am
please work causethere nuthin 2 do and i am finish allmy work….
August 1, 2008 at 11:33 am
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December 15, 2008 at 10:26 am
People tend not to work because they don’t know what they are doing or they hate their jobs.
I don’t want to work because other people don’t work :-). Some pretend to know what they are doing and it really annoys me.
And you get what you PAY for :-). So this is another reason I don’t work too hard – I do as much as my senior nothing more and nothing less – lets see if I make senior.
I work for what I get paid to do – not for the hope of getting what I deserve.
February 24, 2009 at 1:07 pm
I have an idea, how about everyone actually works…haha JK, I have a very simple gauge.. if you have tasks to complete and you would rather be on Facebook you need to relieve yourself of your position. You are unfairly costing your employer money that is not being returned to the bank in the way of job performance and or increased revenue in accordance with your position. In addition, if you have a list of tasks and your concentration is dedicated to what your online life is up to, there is a substantial chance you do not have an offline life and should be ”working” for substance in your real life not your digital one.
This is a crass measuring stick, however I must say it is very rarely wrong so please excuse it’s context as strictly informational. I find that those people who have an active sex life with real breathing people spend a lot less time online wasting time, these same people are also happier at work..produce better results and are less likely to zone out stalking friends online.