Office personas – the colleague obsessed with cleaning

It is not easy to work with people. Have you ever thought about making a classification of the various types of colleagues and managers that you have encountered so far?! 

Talking with my friends about our work experiences, I managed to define a couple of office personas. Here below you will find the one about the colleague obsessed with cleaning.

How many of you have already worked with such a typology?

 

The Case of the Colleague Obsessed with Cleaning

We all must have at least once in our lives met somebody obsessed with cleaning. At work, the things are rather difficult to handle if one preferes to have everything shining. At the most, one can control the cleanlinless of one’s office desk. Of course, the people working in the HR department will put flyers in kitchens and halls to remind workers of the respect they must show to the others regarding cleanliness and thus keeping the health and friendly atmosphere into the office building.

I happen to witness the most intense discussions while in the kitchen. Rebukes follwed by swearing were the highlight of the dicussion. And nothing could derail the participants in such reproving, not even other colleagues that gently entered the kitchen with their department dish sponge who would clean the dishes, dry them and leave as fast as they can without interrupting the blasting at full volume of the fight on some people’s uncleanliness.

I was very amused to hear about the story of the cleaning lady that would wipe with the same cloth all desks of a building in which 300 people worked. The cloth had an indentifiable color, but the smell was easy to define – it made one sick. The person telling me about this did not dare to tell the cleaning lady that he does not like the smell of his desk after she wipes the desk with the cloth or the fact that his sleeves would cary the stench for nearly an entire day. But he did ask her nicely not to clean his desk anymore, mentioning that he is rather obsessed with cleaning and he would rather do it himself. The cleaning lady gently smiled at him and nodded. But, from time to time, in the morning, a sour smell would greet him at his desk, which is to mean that even those obsessed with cleaning need support from time to time.

 

Alina was recently hired as a secretary in a consultancy firm. She knew even from the start that she must be careful about how she acts, but she had never before met such evil and selfish specimens. Even though she was often explained that consultants work very hard, she could not fathom why the were so mean. Work could not be held responsible for that. She had met other people that worked harder, physically; such as, the gentleman that told her he worked during a summer for a roadways&bridges company and at the end of it people would not recognize him being so sunburnt. People like him did not become meaner due to the hard working conditions. The consultants had no excuse.

Alina knew that she must pay attention to how she answers the phone and to always cater to the consultants’ needs. Her manager, Leo, had explained to her that from all of her tasks this was the most important one, and that the consultants needed to be kept happy. So Alina made efforts in order to make sure they were, taking their lunch orders, bringing them food and their change, and making sure they had everything they needed in order to do their jobs.

The most difficult, by far, was Violeta. She had liked her in the beginning. She was beautiful, very beautiful actually. But after having known her, Alina understood that even witches can be beautiful. Clara, the girl that used to occupy the positon before her, had given Alina a tip – 'Violeta likes things to be very clean! Make sure that her garbage bin is always empty and never throw something in it by mistake. I once did that and I was very sorry'.

Ever since, Alina would be extra careful around Violeta’s desk. It was true, Violeta’s desk was actually very clean and nothing more could be found on it then the desk light and a ballpoint pen. However, Alina was puzzled about how Violeta liked to keep things clean, but had no problem in brushing her hair in the middle of the open space, with everyone around, leaving her hair to fall on the carpet?!

The first time that Alina noticed Violeta doing this, she had the impression that she was watching a sleepwalker. Violeta was standing a couple of steps from her desk (probably not to drop some hairs on her desk) and was brushing her hair in slow motion. Alina concluded that people are weird and contradictory, and minded her own business, answering the landline.

Leo: Alina, is that you?

Alina: Yes.

Leo: It’s Leo. I urgently need my notes.

 

Alina feared that this would turn into another complicated situation. Had he forgotten his notes in the hotel room again? Last time, it was easy to get them back, even after Leo checked out. She had rang the hotel in Amsterdam and people were nice enough to send them. Together with the laptop that Leo had also forgotten on the windowsill of the hotel room. Leo was a wonder! But she no longer asked herself questions about him. Not ever since she found out that he had no clue about the difference between a.m and p.m. . How did he manage to get on planes on time she did not question anymore! She had promised herlself that, to no longer ask why.

Alina: Sure, Leo. Do you know were they are? At the hotel?

Leo: No. I need other notes. They are on my desk, could you please go in there and read them to me? They are on the last page.

Alina: OK, wait for me, please.

 

Alina put down the receiver and went to her manager’s office. She took the agenda from his desk and while she was coming out of the office, with the tail of her eye she noticed Violeta standing from her desk. Alina arrived at the reception desk, she took the receiver and asked Leo where exactly she could start reading from.

Violeta was coming slowly towards the reception desk. Like a snake that takes its own time crawling towards the victim, convinced of the fact that it can paralyze it only by the slow motion that is so hard to bear. Yet, Alina continued reading.

Leo: Ah, so I was remembering it correctly! Hang on a little to make a note. Could you please repeat the last two sentences?

Alina: At seven o’clock...

Alina is startled by some white thing moving about very fast over her head. She stops reading, she raises her head and sees Violeta resting on one of her arms on the reception desk and with the other arm flaunting an empty box of desk tissues. Alina knits her brows and gently moves her head, asking Violeta without uttering a word about what she wants. As a response, Violeta keeps flaunting the empty box more closer to Alina’s face, indicating with an arm that she wants Alina to take it and throw it in Alina’s garbage bin.

Alina knits her brows and indicates one more time to Violeta that she is speaking on the phone, hoping that this way she will leave her in peace. Violeta slams down, less noisy than she would have hoped, the empty box of desk tissues. She then turns on her heels, raises her chin, flaunting her red, straight hair, snorts and directs herself proudly to her desk. Another consultant's mission achieved!

A short while after this incident, Alina resigned, as she did not find understanding from Leo after telling him the story of the empty box. Some things cannot be forced, but when one notices that one has nobody one one’s side, it’s better to leave for other horizons.