Now children...

It's an understatement to say that it is difficult to manage people in an office setting. I used to think I could be very good at it. I am an empathetic person who finds it easy to listen to others. I try not to be judgmental. I try to be open to the ideas of others. Turns out, these may not be the traits that make a person a successful manager. I'm beginning to think that I would be a more effective social worker than manager.

I have recently taken over the management of 5 people. Two of these people share an office and could not be more different from one another. There is an age difference, an economic difference (in terms of their backgrounds), and a huge difference in work ethic. The younger has inadvertently shared his views on work with the older staffer. I say inadvertently because it happened when the younger was talking on the phone to a friend in the presence of his office mate. The younger openly flaunts the already loosely imposed rules about hours and time off. He talks about freelance work he's doing on the side, sometimes during office hours. He routinely calls in with medical issues even though he appears to be a young, vital, and healthy fellow.

Enter the social worker.

The older has shared many of these insights with me. He is indignant about this fellow's blase attitude toward work. It infuriates him that this young fellow routinely works at home even though it is a perfectly accepted practice in our office and one that the older fellow could utilize himself. He is furious. He down right hates this guy! The problem is I cannot act on the information that's been gleaned from the office relationship. I have no first-hand knowledge of the younger fellow's comments. As far as I can tell, he completes his work in a timely way. And it is not against the rules to be arrogant or flip. It may be bad manners, but it's not against the rules. How many of us have had bosses who have been incredibly arrogant you-know-whats?

Can I really meet with this guy and tell him he's arrogant and being rude to his office mate? Somehow it seems like something his mother or father should have addressed when he was a child, but here I am in this situation. One "child" is annoying the other. The other sees no problem with his behavior.

I don't want to be their mother. I don't even want to be their social worker. I just want them to treat each other with respect and do their work.

I'm considering hanging a "your mother doesn't work here" sign on my door.