Nice touch

Nice touch

Are you running out of ideas for torturing your office mate? A kind reader named Judith Quick sent in an anecdote that might help. She once shared an office with a man who was not known for his charm. He knew she loved Gummi Bears, and he brought a bag into the office. Instead of offering her some, though, he ate them very slowly in front of her, pausing every now and then so she would think he was going to offer her some. Finally, he finished off the whole bag — and then complained to her that his stomach hurt. A nice little touch at the end, don't you think?

The worst workplaces

Do you remember the last issue of Business Spotlight, where we wrote about the great things some companies do for their workers? There are firms that pay for fitness clubs, allow games during working hours, and organize ski trips. I don't know about you, but I found all that happiness potentially depressing.

"Do you have something equally ridiculous to share?"

If you're like most people, your employer doesn't give you free massages and gourmet meals — you might not even get free coffee. Wouldn't you feel better about your own job if you heard horror stories about other people's workplaces instead? I thought so. So I am inviting readers to send in stories about awful places they've worked. I'll make a start by telling you about a former employer of mine who didn't even provide us with toilet paper. We had to bring in our own. Do you have something equally ridiculous to share? If so, please e-mail me!

KATHRIN ENKE is an American editor and translator based near Stuttgart. She is still getting used to her new boss: her baby daughter, born in September 2007. Contact: k.enke@spotlight-verlag.de