Workforce Disruption: How to Wrangle the Office Clown

Everyone wants to be able to relax a little and enjoy their time at work. But, what do you do when a teammate takes the 'fun' a little too far, and begins disrupting those around them? Here are a few things to think about, and suggestions to implement a plan of action.

1. Is the team mate just disrupting you, or are others disrupted as well?

Newsflash: You will not get along with everyone you work with 100% of the time- and that is ok! If it seems you are the only person who is bothered by your teammate, there are a couple things you can do to help alleviate the distraction and get back to work. One of these is putting a "do not disturb" sign outside your door or cubicle for a two hour time block. This will allow you two hours of uninterrupted work time. Then, you can join in on the conversation and still feel that you have a good handle on your workload. If you do not have a door that can be closed, try bringing headphones. Whether you actually listen to music or not, it is perceived that you are in your own world of concentration. It should eliminate a bulk of the distractions and interruptions.

2. Is the employee bored?

If you are the manager or supervisor of this person, you should assess their workload. Employees that have too little to do-or too much to do- may need a shift in work load to increase the efficiency of their work day. Spending too much time conversing with coworkers may just be a time filler or procrastination tool they are using. If they have too much work load, they may feel overwhelmed and are using the conversation to de-stress and forget about how much work they have. If there is a task they have that they do not understand or is too difficult, they possibly could be putting it off instead of asking for help.

3. Is the disruption work-related or personal issues?

Do the conversations seem to be about clients and work tasks or is it geared more towards family, friends and what happened the night before? If it is about clients or work tasks, see above and look at their work load or processes. A change in a process may need to be made, to allow tasks to run more smoothly. If a client is a topic of discussion, encourage them to speak with a manager or supervisor to address the situation. Try to look at every topic of conversation as a chance for improvement and innovation instead of as a distraction.

Solutions:

1. Have a conversation!

There is a very good chance that your teammate has NO IDEA they are a distraction! Have a casual conversation with them about the issue. Explain that not everyone can multi-task or work while conversing, so the excessive talking and clowning around can become a distraction. Encourage them to be mindful of those around them, but also allow them to express their outgoing character. Put them in charge of an office activity or food day. This will allow them to be social, but in a structured and controlled way.

2. Designate 'fun' time.

Plan office events, such as a tailgate in fall or luau in the summer. (Check out 'A Year of Workplace Activities' for more examples.) Make this a planned event towards the end of the week, when employees can kick back a little bit and get out any energy they have from sitting at a desk all day. Another option is to encourage physical activity during work and lunch breaks. Even 30 minutes of walking a day increases mental clarity, concentration and helps maintain a healthy weight. It will also allow employees to get some unused energy out. They can walk around the block or a designated track and be social.

3. Eliminate external distractions.

If your company doesn't already have a policy for the personal use of social media and electronic communications, you should consider implementing one. This allows employees to only concentrate on work, without having interruptions about current events, personal issues, or cute puppy videos. There may be push back at first when this policy is implemented, but employees will soon realize they are more productive with uninterrupted work time.