The only thing I’ve ever missed about working the so-called real job, which fewer and fewer people have these days, is the cameraderie that comes with working with a cohesive group. As much as I love being my own boss and commuting ten feet down the hall and setting my own schedule and hours, I do miss interacting with other people. Not that much, since I am an introvert, but I do miss it.
The past two days I’ve worked full days in small a windowless room with three other people in a desperate attempt to finish a web project. It actually sounds more desperate that it really was. We were able to get the bulk of the work done and it wasn’t as stressful as anticipated.
What I really enjoyed was the banter. We’d joke back and forth, ask questions and collaborate, someone would make a coffee run, and the work got done. The laughter was great. I miss that. I probably came across as a hyper spaz because I kept making comments and jokes and just thrived on the atmosphere. I don’t get enough of that.
I don’t miss it enough to start looking for an office job, but it does make me think I should consider expanding the Monkey Outta Nowhere empire. Maybe get a real office, a staff of unpaid monkey interns. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Interesting! Having worked in an office environment for four years now (and I have to say I think it’s a pretty good one, not just an average one) I sometimes enjoy the environment, but I’d rather have something more like what you have. There has to be some balance in between there somewhere.
The main thing I’m thankful for at Apple is that I can close the door of my office anytime, and go into my own little mental hidey-hole if I need to.
D-d-door? What’s that? In all my various jobs I’ve never had my own office with a door.
I had a desk in the corner of what amounted to a hallway. I shared a cube with two other people. I had a stretch of counter (you couldn’t call it a desk) between two cubes. I shared a cubicle with my boss. I had my very own cubicle. And now I have my very own office, sans door.
I guess for a brief six months I had an office with a door, but it wouldn’t latch and would just swing open, so that doesn’t really count.
The offices at my work have doors, but the environment is such that you only close the doors during extreme circumstances. Everyone assumes something’s wrong if your door is closed, so you can’t really close the door as a means of shutting out distractions.
There are times when working with others can be a lot of fun, but to balance out your experience you may want to try to track down a group of jerks and idiots and spend a couple days trying to work with those people.