FabSwingers.com forum: When There's No Work

By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

So I'm sat at my desk, logged in for over an hour and muddling around looking for work or even something to help with. It's been the same since I started back on Monday and I just wonder what the point is? I woke up early for this and have to pretend to be busy until I log off at 5. What a waste of life.

Does anyone else think like like this on occasion?

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Ah frustrating. What would you rather be doing?

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

When there's no work then yes! It's hard, especially when you have to put time down to clients to appease the time sheet but there's not alot you can do if there's nothing in. Sometimes I'll take holidays (but I don't like using them up for no work), or I'll have to just put it down to sundry once the boss has agreed.

Thankfully there is regular things to do each month (VAT returns) but when there's no accounts in then you're sort of just waiting around, twiddling your thumbs. At least in the office you could do some filing, tidying, organising etc.

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By *tephanjMan
over a year ago

Kettering

I feel like that most days at work, but it's the job I took when i couldn't get any other. At least im only doing it for a short while as I'm retiring soon

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I couldnt do it, if we have nothing on i send them home or on training courses. Nothing worse than sitting, waiting it just seems a waste of time & time is precious.

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Ah frustrating. What would you rather be doing?"

Good question, now you mentioned it there is a new skill I've been wanting learn relating to my job. I could be doing that!

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"When there's no work then yes! It's hard, especially when you have to put time down to clients to appease the time sheet but there's not alot you can do if there's nothing in. Sometimes I'll take holidays (but I don't like using them up for no work), or I'll have to just put it down to sundry once the boss has agreed.

Yeah, I don't see the point in taking holidays, especially this early in the year. I'm looking through SOPs at the minute and it's mind-numbing to say the least

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"I feel like that most days at work, but it's the job I took when i couldn't get any other. At least im only doing it for a short while as I'm retiring soon

I understand that feeling, hope you have a happy retirement

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Yeah, I don't see the point in taking holidays, especially this early in the year. I'm looking through SOPs at the minute and it's mind-numbing to say the least

Our holidays don't renew until May and I've only got about 3 days left to take until then

Do some more training? Check if anyone else needs something done? Become the brew bitch?

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"I couldnt do it, if we have nothing on i send them home or on training courses. Nothing worse than sitting, waiting it just seems a waste of time & time is precious.

I think training courses are a good shout, there's something I've been wanting to learn so might dig into that

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Daily!!

Fortunately I just bugger off home if there is nothing to do. I refuse to just sit at work for no reason. Plus it’s not like I can find anything to do either..

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Same. I've told my boss I'm busy for the next few weeks but I'm sat on my arse at home moving the mouse to keep it green.

I worked like a fucking cunt through the first lockdown while people were at at home doing sod all and they just dumped on me. I could have been dead and they wouldn't have known. So I am watching the birds in the sun.

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By *amie HantsWoman
over a year ago

Atlantis

Yes. I usually just call my clients for a chit chat though

There’s been a lot of changes to regulations for me though so I have to read all the new rules

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By *luebell888Woman
over a year ago

Glasgowish

"So I'm sat at my desk, logged in for over an hour and muddling around looking for work or even something to help with. It's been the same since I started back on Monday and I just wonder what the point is? I woke up early for this and have to pretend to be busy until I log off at 5. What a waste of life.

Does anyone else think like like this on occasion?"

If I have nothing to do then I fall asleep. Why not change jobs to something that stimulates you more.

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

Yeah, I don't see the point in taking holidays, especially this early in the year. I'm looking through SOPs at the minute and it's mind-numbing to say the least

Our holidays don't renew until May and I've only got about 3 days left to take until then

Do some more training? Check if anyone else needs something done? Become the brew bitch? "

Checked with my team and a couple of others are also looking for work. I'm working from home so I'm my own brew bitch because I'm a strong independent man

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Daily!!

Fortunately I just bugger off home if there is nothing to do. I refuse to just sit at work for no reason. Plus it’s not like I can find anything to do either.. "

I'm working from home so that part is already done haha but wish I could just log off and be left to my own devices.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Aaaa that’s when you need to hier a glamorous assistant who’s willing to emmm clean the floors underneath your desk as you sit bord

ha ha

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"Daily!!

Fortunately I just bugger off home if there is nothing to do. I refuse to just sit at work for no reason. Plus it’s not like I can find anything to do either..

I'm working from home so that part is already done haha but wish I could just log off and be left to my own devices."

I leave my work laptop logged on at home so it looks like I’m working..

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Have a chat with your colleagues, potter about the house doing a few chores and make the most of the quiet time when you can

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Same. I've told my boss I'm busy for the next few weeks but I'm sat on my arse at home moving the mouse to keep it green.

It's a weird one because if I was to be logged in, I'd want some work to keep me busy so it felt like the day was worth it.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Honestly there were days when I was WFH that I just used to check my laptop every hour or so to see if anyone needed anything from me. Other than that there was no work/I'd finished everything.

The worst was when I went in to the office and had to work harder at pretending to be busy than I do when I actually work

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By *viatrixWoman
over a year ago

Redhill

For years and years I wanted a 9-5 office job instead of the frontline customer service roles I have done all my career… I wanted to manage my own workload, be able to get up and have coffee breaks, etc.

I got what I wanted in July. OMG. I lasted 4 months. I hated it! I felt trapped, isolated… hated every single minute of it…

I’m back now to frontline, hands-on shiftwork and would never have it any other way.

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Yes. I usually just call my clients for a chit chat though

There’s been a lot of changes to regulations for me though so I have to read all the new rules

Luckily, I'm not in contact with any clients but get what you mean about the new rules. My company split off from another one so had to re-read all the new company documents

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Does anyone else think like like this on occasion?"

Sounds like most of my work days lately. I find things to do around the house, and carry my work phone to keep an eye on things. I also generate work related field trips to get me out on a nice day. Could be far worse, after all I'm still getting paid for this..!

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"If I have nothing to do then I fall asleep. Why not change jobs to something that stimulates you more."

It is pretty stimulating to be fair when it is busy, but just these last few days that have been a bit frustrating. Although maybe I am a bit too comfortable atm

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By *r TriomanMan
over a year ago

Chippenham Malmesbury area

I don't have many quiet periods OP but when I do, it's an opertunity to catch up with my mandated annual training; also a chance to look at the internal vacancies, there maybe more rewarding jobs available.

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Aaaa that’s when you need to hier a glamorous assistant who’s willing to emmm clean the floors underneath your desk as you sit bord

ha ha "

That's a great shout! Any volunteers?

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By *annaBeStrongMan
over a year ago

Your earning a wage to do nothing?

What an incredibly privileged problem to have at a time when so many are struggling.

I went through 3 lockdowns self employed with no SE grants or financial assistance

Be happy your still employed despite the fact your clearly not needed

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I was promoted early last year and moved into another position. I’m fortunate to have a lot of freedom but my workload is minimal and I do the big boss’s job for him too. My old position was completely the opposite, 12 hour days most days, always busy and under pressure… but I miss it. I’m so bored with what I’m currently doing.

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By *ecadent_DevonMan
over a year ago

Okehampton

Is this not symptomatic of the current phase of your job OP? When we start a new job, we tend to work long hours, fighting fires and getting things straight. Over time, as we get better at what we do, we learn what causes the fires or introduce systems that simplify complex processes. As such the job that used to take 12 hours a day now takes 4 or less.

We still have moments of great activity (say starting a new project) which require those long hours again, but once it is running, the systems and our ability to see problems before they occur contribute to a less demanding day.

If this describes your pattern of work, then you shouldn’t feel bad, you put in the effort when it was required, a “slow phase” is your reward

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Have a chat with your colleagues, potter about the house doing a few chores and make the most of the quiet time when you can "

That's a good point, I've managed to find training videos for a new skill I've been wanting to learn so can do that for now

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"Aaaa that’s when you need to hier a glamorous assistant who’s willing to emmm clean the floors underneath your desk as you sit bord

ha ha

That's a great shout! Any volunteers?

Well I thought the

would have been obvious lol

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"Your earning a wage to do nothing?

What an incredibly privileged problem to have at a time when so many are struggling.

I went through 3 lockdowns self employed with no SE grants or financial assistance

Be happy your still employed despite the fact your clearly not needed "

That seems a bit harsh to compare my situation to others when I've had no impact on others not being able to find work. I'm extremely lucky to be working this entire time but that doesn't mean I shouldn't want more for myself just because others have it worse. What do you expect me to do? Perspective is a great thing to have but it's pointless to stop yourself progressing because of it.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Pre-covid my work was 90% visiting with people face to face although we were looking at doing some of it remotely. Lockdowns pushed us into doing the bulk of our work by phone/video/email. It's not as effective but it gets done, although there are some elements that still require a physical presence. There is a huge backlog of these so we will get busy again, thankfully. Our problem seems to be that our office can't process work quickly enough to push it out to the field operatives, so we are often left twiddling our thumbs, or whatever we choose to twiddle.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

How about abit of spring cleaning? Declutter your desk and give everything a good old wash down and polish, nice and fresh for when the workload starts up again.

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By *uriousscouserWoman
over a year ago

Wirral

That was the story of my 2021. Time lies very heavy when you're scrabbling around for stuff to do. I also found it a knock to my confidence that I wasn't actively contributing, brought it up constantly with my manager who wasn't in any way bothered.

I have much higher hopes for 2022 and I hope your role also picks up soon OP.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

After being a manager on a building sites over the years and now self employed doing my own things, this weather does not help

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By *ourNextAddictionMan
over a year ago

Somerset

I can’t stand that OP. For me time is more valuable than £ in some instances, this is one.

I’ve found myself in that position in the past and found it led to lazy habits, I’d maybe look at changing jobs and progressing up the ladder. That way you’re getting challenged constantly as you continue to progress.

Nothings worse than trying to find things to pass the time, there’s only so many times you can refresh google news….

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By *annaBeStrongMan
over a year ago

"Your earning a wage to do nothing?

What an incredibly privileged problem to have at a time when so many are struggling.

I went through 3 lockdowns self employed with no SE grants or financial assistance

Be happy your still employed despite the fact your clearly not needed

Complaining about having to pretend to be busy doesn’t sound like trying to progress yourself

If you lost soundex more like you wanted to progress yourself I’d have liked it.

But it just sounds like your complaining about being bored while earning a wage that many people would kill for right now.

Maybe instead of pretending to be bored and telling us you could take steps to progress yourself

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"That was the story of my 2021. Time lies very heavy when you're scrabbling around for stuff to do. I also found it a knock to my confidence that I wasn't actively contributing, brought it up constantly with my manager who wasn't in any way bothered.

I have much higher hopes for 2022 and I hope your role also picks up soon OP."

Sounds like my manager. I volunteered my team to deal with office email enquiries in between our own (not very) regular work, to take the load off the office. That was declined as they didn't want to let go of that aspect of their little empire, despite bitching about the workload. Okay, how about we help out in other areas of the organisation? No, we can never be sure when we are going to need you to go out on a job....Okay, we could help out at a local vaccination centre, but stay handy? No, that might expose you to covid and we would be liable as it's outside your normal role...ffs

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By *oeBeans OP Man
over a year ago

Derby

"That seems a bit harsh to compare my situation to others when I've had no impact on others not being able to find work. I'm extremely lucky to be working this entire time but that doesn't mean I shouldn't want more for myself just because others have it worse. What do you expect me to do? Perspective is a great thing to have but it's pointless to stop yourself progressing because of it.

Complaining about having to pretend to be busy doesn’t sound like trying to progress yourself

If you lost soundex more like you wanted to progress yourself I’d have liked it.

But it just sounds like your complaining about being bored while earning a wage that many people would kill for right now.

Maybe instead of pretending to be bored and telling us you could take steps to progress yourself "

That's fair enough, someone mentioned higher up about falling into lazy habits and maybe a bit of that has crept in. I've tried speaking to managers about progression last year so coming into this year with no work has been a bit annoying because it does feel like I'm spinning my wheels and not contributing.

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By *eyond PurityCouple
over a year ago

Lincolnshire

It's awful when you've nothing to occupy you, the day can seem so long.

I read yesterday that the Cayman Islands are offering themselves as the remote worker's place to be. Now that's somewhere I wouldn't mind being busy doing nothing!

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By *inky_couple2020Couple
over a year ago

North West

It's not something I really experience. My workload is always ridiculous and when WFH, I've often not had time for lunch or had to hold going to the loo for ages. It's exactly the same as when I'm in the centre, just with my own surroundings instead of work.

I think doing some training or something is a good idea, something that might help with work at some point.

That, or clean the kitchen *shrug*

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Does anyone else think like like this on occasion?"

No need to pretend to be busy, voice your concerns to upper management who should be able to help or simply make the most of situation whilst it lasts...

Clock watching will only make matters worse in making you feel the way you do.

Alternatively, take that leap of faith in finding something more challenging to do...!

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By *immyinreadingMan
over a year ago

henley on thames

Does anyone else think like like this on occasion?"

Are you working from home or in the office?

Training courses are one option. So is looking at the objectives that you ignored from last year’s appraisal and seeing if you can make it look like you did them.

Writing procedure docs, planning for upcoming busing periods, archiving, etc

Or planning your holidays, that’s always good.

And if you’re at home, having a wank and a nap is a good option.

During lockdown last year I started doing one set of press-ups every hour... slow ones, good form. Saw big changes in only a couple of months

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