#087 Conference Calls

When you are an integral member of a team within a company that conducts business globally, you will eventually have to participate in your fair share of conference calls.

Conference calls themselves really don't bother me. Sure, they're often boring and stereotypical, and people tend to just regurgitate the same information just in a different way that makes them sound unique and profound (like they actually know what they're talking about).

What really bothers me is other people's lack of respect while people are on a conference call. It's difficult enough to try to understand people with certain types of foreign accents, so it's really distracting and irritating when people are walking by my desk and having loud and/or casual conversations while I'm trying to focus. I wish I had my own office, because that would really solve this issue... but I don't and I can't do anything about that. When possible, I try to book a conference room to have some privacy but those aren't always available, either.

For some reason, people seem to forget what an appropriate "office voice" is and how loudly they should speak to one another while in the presence of others.