Modern times

Today has been yet another day of meetings. If interruption disrupts productivity, meetings destroy it. Meetings are the nuclear bomb to productivity. What have I done this week? Listen and speak. Not work, just listen. And speak, as in reminding the team that according to the agenda we should be having a break right about now.

Today's meeting was with a different group of my fellow workers than Monday and Tuesday, so at least the faces and the topic at hand were fresh. I had the chance to observe a new lot of things I find either interesting or irritating about my fellow workers. For instance, the Diet Coke guy. When lunch was ordered in, the drinks did not arrive, so the receptionist purchased an assortment of drinks from the machine on the third floor and brought them to us. When DC guy realized there was no Diet Coke in the selection, he had a bit of a meltdown and said slash whined, "Who in this day and age would not include Diet Coke? I can't believe that, I really can't believe that." As he spoke his words, he double and triple checked the 7-Up and Dr. Pepper cans just to be sure that they were not Diet Coke in disguise.

Apparently, he couldn't believe it.

In this day and age? He said it as if he had gone to the emergency room with a serious bloody gash on his arm and the doctors placed leaches on his wound to stop the bleeding. Or maybe he had to use a rotary dial phone. Or the cab he called arrived as a horse and buggy.

I wanted to sit him down and tell him that in this day in age, we thank the person who, upon realizing there is a problem, takes it upon his or herself to resolve it. Even if the answer involves 7-Up.