Comments on: top 10 ways to look busy at work

By: Note

Note — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 00:44:02 +0000

This is an insane treasure trove of good things
I will do.. I work around 3 women and 1 old male (80 yrs) who loves to gossip..I recently got promoted and the name of the game is LOOK busy… And frankly… I’m just not that creative. Thank you all so much for this.. You all might have saved my career

By: Joe Porter

Joe Porter — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 02:39:44 +0000

This reminds me years ago of the computer game “battle chess” where your chess pieces actually attacked their opponents. Lots of fun to play and watch. The game had an emergency hot key called “boss mode” that immediately brought up a boring spread sheet. So there you go — set up some numbers in excell. That looks like work.

By: Serg

Serg — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:57:12 +0000

Very funny websiteh ttp://www.keeplookingbusy.com offers you a deceptive interface that looks like a Word and keep out nosy people who are trying to trace what you are doing or browsing while online.

By: Deus está vindo, pareça ocupado | oito

Deus está vindo, pareça ocupado | oito — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:26:33 +0000

[...] todas as dicas foram selecionadas e traduzidas daqui, não sendo de minha autoria nem de meu uso diário. Têm apenas fins educativos. adicionar [...]

By: waqas mir

waqas mir — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 07:49:06 +0000

love all the suggestions

By: Charlie

Charlie — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 20:08:19 +0000

I have two suggestions. First, you should attend meetings. Few things are as unproductive as meetings. Second, go on business trips. I’ve seen plenty of people who take one trip after another to avoid work. Plus you have the added benefits that you build up frequent flyer miles and you can complain about having to take the trip and about how much email and other work you have when you get back.

By: Jill

Jill — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 14:08:13 +0000

Ever since I got my office job in March, I have been seeking ways to look busy. To my excitement and to your potential benefit, I have found ways to look, seem, and even kind of BE busy (without actually working) for an extended period of time. Here is what I found out: The easiest way to look busy without your boss getting suspicious is if you do only one thing at a time. By that I mean: if I have letters to mail out (which usually come in the amount of 50 or 60 letters), I only do one thing at a time. For example, if there are cover sheets that need to be printed out, I will print those and instead of getting the envelopes while they are printing, I will wait until they are finished printing. My printer here is fairly slow so to print 50 copies, I usually get about 5 minutes of freedom time (especially since I do not have to retrieve the copies as soon as I make them). This works for everything. If you are going to get the envelopes after printing your copies and you have something on your desk that needs to be brought to the same general area, make two trips. There’s no reason why you need to rush to get things done if your business is as slow and as boring as mine. I have also found out that wasting time is especially easy if my boss is on the phone with a client. Since his office is to my back & when he is seated (& on the telephone) his back is to me, it is very easy to just do nothing. Why keep busy when your boss is on the telephone and totally unaware of your presence? You can do your job when he gets off the telephone and starts paying attention to what you are doing in his subconscious. Remember folks, this really only works if your business runs slow like the one I work at. Do not attempt this if you could potentially be swamped with work.

I agree with most of the people who left comments on this website, but I find that looking impatient and/or annoyed rarely works. If anything, it will just dig you into an even deeper hole since your boss, upon finding out you are (or seem) impatient or annoyed, will almost certainly ask you what the matter is. What are you going to say, “Oh nothing, I’m just trying to look annoyed so you think I’m keeping busy”? And you certainly can’t say, “Oh, business XYZ just called up and they said they wouldn’t be able to deliver the laminates for the job tomorrow!” because that would be lying, wouldn’t it? Only the actors, actresses, and adrenaline lovers should attempt this one.

Lastly, clean your desk!! If you have nothing to do, I’m sure there’s yesterday’s coffee cup or an old muffin wrapper that could be disposed of. If not, straighten up some papers. Check the stapler. Are you low on paper clips? Post-its? Why don’t you go to the closet and get more? Open a new pack if that wastes more time.

If all else fails, empty the garbage at everyone’s cubicles. It’s a dirty job but it’s better than doing paperwork!

By: Office Desks

Office Desks — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 20:41:32 +0000

Do you allow readers to subscribe to this rss feed?

By: 7aneeen

7aneeen — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 13:37:44 +0000

OoOoOoH Good stuff!!

By: Noah Kagan

Noah Kagan — Mon, 21 Nov 2005 03:03:50 +0000

George Costanza’s 10 commandments for “working hard”:

1. Never walk without a document in your hands. People with documents in their hands look like hardworking employees heading for important meetings. People with nothing in their hands look like they’re heading for the cafeteria. People with a newspaper in their hand look like they’re heading for the toilet. Above all, make sure you carry loads of stuff home with you at night, thus generating the false impression that you work longer hours than you do.
2. Use computers to look busy. Any time you use a computer, it looks like “work” to the casual observer. You can send and receive personal e-mail, chat and generally have a blast without doing anything remotely related to work. These aren’t exactly the societal benefits that the proponents of the computer revolution would like to talk about but they’re not bad either. When you get caught by your boss – and you *will* get caught — your best defense is to claim you’re teaching yourself to use new software, thus saving valuable training dollars.
3. Messy desk. Top management can get away with a clean desk. For the rest of us, it looks like we’re not working hard enough. Build huge piles of documents around your workspace. To the observer, last year’s work looks the same as today’s work; it’s volume that counts. Pile them high and wide. If you know somebody is coming to your cubicle, bury the document you’ll need halfway down in an existing stack and rummage for it when he/she arrives.
4. Voice Mail. Never answer your phone if you have voice mail. People don’t call you just because they want to give you something for nothing – they call because they want YOU to do work for THEM. That’s no way to live. Screen all your calls through voice mail. If somebody leaves a voice mail message for you and it sounds like impending work, respond during lunch hour when you know they’re not there – it looks like you’re hardworking and conscientious even though you’re being a devious weasel.
5. Looking Impatient and Annoyed. According to George Costanza, one should also always try to look impatient and annoyed to give your bosses the impression that you are always busy.
6. Leave the office late. Always leave the office late, especially when the boss is still around. You could read magazines and storybooks that you always wanted to read but have no time until late before leaving. Make sure you walk past the boss’ room on your way out. Send important emails at unearthly hours (e.g. 9:35pm, 7:05am, etc.) and during public holidays.
7. Creative Sighing for Effect. Sigh loudly when there are many people around, giving the impression that you are under extreme pressure.
8. Stacking Strategy. It is not enough to pile lots of documents on the table. Put lots of books on the floor etc. (thick computer manuals are the best).
9. Build Vocabulary. Read up on some computer magazines and pick out all the jargon and new products. Use the phrases freely when in conversation with bosses. Remember: They don’t have to understand what you say, but you sure sound impressive.
10. MOST IMPORTANT: DON’T forward this to your boss by mistake!!! Words to live by!

thanks Jen!