Back to the Grind
Posted at 4:40 AM on January 5, 2009
by Dale Connelly
(26 Comments)
If you work in an office at a desk with a computer and this is your first day on the job in at least two weeks, welcome back! The initial signs indicate that you are still employed, so congratulations are surely in order because there are no guarantees in any workplace anymore, anywhere.
"But maybe this is a dream," you mutter to yourself. "What if they let me come back today just to give me my walking papers?"
That's a cynical thought to start 2009, and very wrong because the watchword for the New Year is optimism! Things are changing and there's no way to go but up! That cloud of purple paranoia that's been strangling your brain is nothing more than the fading remnants of your 2008 housing bubble hangover.
No one is plotting against you. They're not even watching. Go ahead and look over your shoulder. The little group of sweaty managers huddled over by the file cabinet are not drawing straws to see which one will give you a little tap on the shoulder. Really.
Probably not, anyway. But here are some ways to check.
- Call yourself. If you get a voice mailbox, and the voice is yours, that's a good sign.
- Check your e-mail. After two weeks off, you should have hundreds of new messages. More than half should be from someone other than Mr. Undugu, the Nigerian banker looking for a quick way to secretly transfer millions into the USA.
- Parking. If you drive to work and there was still a spot to put your car, do a little victory dance. In workplaces where parking is an issue, it is everything. Often, the organizational chart and the parking map are the same document, starting at the top with the slot nearest the door. Having a place means you still Have A Place.
- Keys and Access cards. Do these still work? Obviously you got to your desk. That's a huge plus. Are there any empty bins or packing boxes stacked nearby? Idle hand carts for moving cubicle contents to the door, ready and waiting? Hope not.
- Visit the leftovers you've been storing in the office fridge for the past six months. Are they still there? With your name on them? These may be your liveliest workplace initiatives - the only recent projects that haven't been killed for lack of funds. Defend them. Be their champion.
There's a lot to do today as you re-enter the world of work, so stay busy and look productive. And if you think of anything else that might add to the sense of job security we all so desperately need, feel free to share.
Comments (26)
Good Morning Dale!
I like this work theme since Jeanne is back to work after the two week school break. Perhaps High Ho It's Off to Work We Go would be a great tune for the day. I'm not so lucky but am hopeful that 2009 will get me back to work soon.
Mark
Good Morning!
One thing about teaching is that the demand remains fairly constant. You may be shifted to different rooms, different buildings, different titles... but as long as there are children and you take your job seriously (and you have tenure), you'll probably stay employed -unless you have to move to another city/state. Districts prefer new-hires who require the least pay.
Anyway it's back to the white board and smart board for a slug of us today and I can't think of anything I'd rather face than
the sleepy sweet expectant faces of my first graders.
Hmmm, me thinks you may have hit a sensitive area, or perhaps the cold has left people still in bed. Another one to check would be your pager. Is it still vibrating after the last two weeks
Mmmmmmmm..... Monday morning at the office after a long holiday. So far, I've found the office mailbox frozen shut (who knows how much mail is inside?), but my key fob got me in out of the cold, so that's a good thing! My phone is stuck on "Do Not Disturb," (this could be a good thing on a Monday morning...) and the coffee pot was sitting full of coffee, due to someone leaving it in the middle of the brewing process last week (they must have had a pressing New Year's Eve party to attend!) Oh, well....just another Monday, except now it's 2009. Have a good day and Happy New Year everyone!
Greetings All:
I was laid off from my nice corporate secretary job in downtown Mpls many years ago -- I miss the predictable Mon-Fri hours, paid holidays, good benefits, etc. I survived a few layoffs (I remember those dark days), but I was up on the chopping block in the last one.
Now I work part-time in the local grocery store a mile or so from home, do bodywork and other stuff. A much less stressful lifestyle and I'm generally happier for it -- except, of course, significantly less money. I'm 50 lbs lighter from not sitting at a desk job and commuting 10 hours a day.
A big change, but I have no regrets. It's new year, soon a new president and hopefully some better economic news. Happy New Year!
Joanne
Dale:
No not autobody work, physical body work to fix your aches and pains!
White Collar Holler would be a good fit with today's theme.
Thanks for coming back to the grind once again, Dale and Mike!
I find myself in that place of being on an unplanned sabbatical (at least that's how I'm thinking of it) - so starting today, my new job is figuring out what to do next when I grow up. It'll be an adventure, no doubt. Got any good adventure songs up your sleeve for those not going back to email, voice mail and key fobs?...
I heard it's Iris DeMent's birthday - perhaps she has a song appropriate to the back to the grind theme - otherwise 'Let the mystery be' or 'Our town' would be nice to note her special day. Thanks!
Good Morning! I have one more day to make the transition back to ordinary time.
I am at home trying to ignore the Christmas tree which is still up and twinkling away in the living room, inviting me to take it down and pack it safely away for another year. And how about all those other holiday decorations scattered high and low? How did they get all over the place, anyway? I know there are more of them to put away than I took out to begin with. This will take me all day!
Hmm, I guess I have a choice here. I could follow up on my New Year's resolution of getting more exercise by actually using my health club membership starting this morning, or I could get exercise at home by putting the tree, et al, away after a cup of coffee, and a visit to the RH blog. Coffee sure sounds good right now... RH blog sure sounds interesting...
So, Dale, do you remember the song that has to do with a very anti-social fellow who will do just about anything to avoid contact with his co-workers, as well as his clients? I heard it a couple of times on the LGMS, and had to laugh each time. It's good to start the work week, or a day of de-decorating the house, with a laugh, isn't it?
I am looking for some recommendations. My wife did go back to work today after the holiday break. She is a listener of Radio Heartland at home but at work she isn't supposed to listen to radio broadcasts over the computer. I know her employer has been a generous supporter of public radio over the years. Are there any creative suggestions from RH listeners as to how we convince this Minnesota Corporation to allow an exception for The Dale Connelly Show?
Anna:
Best wishes on your new journey. Having been there, I remember feeling terrified, as well as the possibility of starting anew. While I'm still trying to figure what I want to do when I grow up at 51, don't be afraid of carving something truly wonderful out of this "sabbatical" from the Daily Grind.
Don't forget to have some fun and relax while you're looking and exploring.
Your friend in RH,
I work in an "Office Space" type of environment where firings are not out of the ordinary, so I always breathe a sigh of relief when my key card works in the morning. "Mr Sellack" is always a relevant song, but I think you've played it recently.
Well, if "A Cave Beneath My Cube" wasn't the answer to t's question, I'm sure glad you thought of it. How perfect!
I KNOW that guy!
He's a good friend of mine. Quit his job a couple years back rather than trying to hide in the corporate world any more.
Yes that Roches Album was released in1979. Dale Keep Doing What You are Doing.
Thanks for playing 'Let the mystery be' in honor of Iris DeMent's birthday. Given the uncertainty some face these days, I guess it was quite appropriate! BTW, I was born the same year as Iris (1961), and that uncertainty does seem to grow as the years go by, so her advice to let the mystery be caught my attention when I first heard it on the Morning Show.
well, the fob worked, my voice mail worked, and there are no more boxes and such around than are usual....but the only paper in my in-box was a note from HR saying there will be no raises in the foreseeable future and that employer contributions to our pensions have ceased, also for the foreseeable future....
i tried to start the day positive with heading back to work, but that was a bit of a downer...
still, on the bright side, they haven't cut off the free bad coffee, and i can listen to RH while wondering just how much my neighborhood Lund's might pay a good cashier....
i'll just be happy i still have a job, i reckon, and continue saving every possible penny, and follow dale's advice re looking productive (motto: never walk around the office without a pen and paper in your hand--makes ya look busy).
happy new year, all!
Dale - I think the first time I heard the anti-social-guy song it was a live in-studio performance by the writer of the song himself. The song has to with the ways he controls who he sees during the work day - keeping a message on his phone that says he is out of the office; putting a note on his office door saying he is gone for the day; being rather rude when people talk to him, etc. I don't think I imagined this song, although early mornings can lead to some some strange auditory tricks. Thanks for looking for this song - I hope it surfaces somewhere.
BTW - thanks for playing the "Dental Hygiene" song by Mr Moos and Mr Seel. Need to buy that disc!
I'm starting another musical adventure tomorrow along with my piano lessons: I will be helping parents/ grandparents or other caregivers play with their kids in Musikgarten classes!
On the introvert theme: I believe Peter Mayer has a song titled "The Introvert", but I can't remember the specific cd.
Kathy - you may be onto it! Thank you! It almost seems like it was Peter Mayer who was the guest, but the song in my mind somehow didn't fit Peter Mayer, whose music is anything but anti-social. Introverted is probably the correct word. Who knows what metamorphosis that song has undergone in my addlepated memory!
Have a great time in Musikgarten class. Sounds wonderful : )
Thanks T and Kathy,
Peter Mayer it is!
He has something called "The Introvert Song".
It has many of the features you mentioned - notes on the door, hiding, rudeness - all of it very non-Mayer like, but that's the songwriter's art, getting inside another person's head.
I'll play it tomorrow morning. Is there an approximate time when you'd like to hear it?
OK! Thanks, Dale and Kathy! I start work at 7am tomorrow, so right after 6am would be great for me. I don't have a way to listen in my car yet, so I listen to RH as I get ready for work. I hope that early time works for Kathy, also.
Thanks again - t
Suggestions ... FWIW
- Dale, I don't know how you keep up with the blog. My suggestion will only make matters worse for you ... sorry. It's difficult for people to make off-topic comments (like this one) w/o it forever getting lost in your topic. It would be nice if it was like news groups or yahoo groups were we could start our own threads and it would be easier to follow the thread. Yea, it'll get out of control ... that's the problem. If this isn't possible on the MPR web site, you could create a yahoo group. Other radio stations do it. I think it would be inappropriate for one of us to create one and split the listener community.
- What do other people think of the rebroadcast time of the morning show? My personal feeling is that it would be better to have a later rebroadcast time. For those who miss it, a couple hours difference in the rebroadcast isn't going to make much of a difference. However if there was an evening rebroadcast we might having a better chance of hitting one of them. IMHO
- Dale, you are proud of introducing us to new local artists (in a MN kind of way). This isn't a new suggestion, but how about periodically having a live in-studio visits by new artists. Again, I'm making more work for you ... sorry!
Dave
Dave,
Thanks for the comment about groups and threads and topics and such. I am relatively new to this blogging business and don't know much about what is typically done, but I'll talk it over with Julia Shrenckler, who is my Yoda in this whole process.
The rebroadcast question is an interesting one. Our assumption is that people might listen at work during their lunch break, thus the rebroadcast happens from 11 to 1 central time. In a perfect world, we would have other people to do original broadcasts in the middle of the day and the evening.
And I agree that it would be nice to get musicians into the studio for some live performances. We're working on that very thing with Richard Julian and Sasha Dobson, who will be in Minnesota for some shows at the Dakota on Sunday, January 18th.
More details to come!
Love the work theme - goes perfectly with my early morning work-at-home job - as they say: "The best thing about being self-employed is that nobody can fire you."
There's a song in there, somewhere...
Keep doing what you're doing - Radio Heartland is absolutely fantastic and I enjoy listening to the re-broadcast as well - if wish it could be all 3 hours.... Your carefully crafted playlists are stellar.
Now, if only I could figure out how to take Radio Heartland with me when I have to leave my desk.
Listening to Radio Heartland makes me smile - THANKS!
I thought Dale's comments at the beginning of last Saturday night's first show of Radio Heartland at 9pm were classy and to the point. Good for YOU Dale. Please keep being such a great talent and human being on the air for Radio Heartland. MPR isn't making it easy for you I know but your heroic efforts are not going unnoticed.
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