Pssst! Guess what I heard about pet peeves…

Are you a gossip? Clutterbug? Poor time manager? If so, take note: You’re driving your coworkers bonkers.

That’s because gossip, messiness and poor time management lead the list of office pet peeves, says a just-released Randstad survey. Other aggravations included strong scents, loud noises, overusing personal communications devices in meetings and eMail misuse.

What I found even more interesting was the breakdown of employees’ responses to each annoyance. For example, people dislike gossip in the workplace, yet 41 percent choose to say nothing about it to the gossiper or supervisors.

That means the gossip continues unchecked. And who is there to listen? The very coworkers who say it’s a pet peeve.

Hmm. Seems to be a catch-22. However, I think two office realities are in play. The first is that people often rely on gossip to negotiate office politics. If they plug the hole, they might lose out on valuable information.

And the other is that people don’t mind gossip as much as they say they do. They just mind when the chatter is about them.

Here’s the bottom line: Open, frank communication with coworkers and supervisors is always a great starting point for any workplace issue, from basic peeves like overwhelming perfume use, to more serious matters like performance reviews.

And if you’re a consultant, here’s a special set of tips for handling office gossip, and avoiding a spot on someone else’s top pet peeves list.

Posted by Anna M.