What Kind of Worker are You?

Do you know those people at work who get away with anything (or do nothing) are loved by all and can do no wrong?  It always blew my mind how this guy I worked with, in the Navy, mastered this.  Those days at sea when there were only moments of “free time” which were meant for eating, sleeping or exercising, you would find him watching movies in the lounge (AKA Wardroom), sipping coffee or guffawing at the latest ship gossip with a captive listener.  One morning he REAKED of alcohol as he commanded the ship off the pier after a sailor’s night in port.  No one said a thing.

When his southern draw was particularly thick, say over cocktails in one of our port visits, I would pointedly ask him AGAIN where he was from:  Maryland.  “Ah, Maryland, the deep south.  That explains the accent,” I would instigate.  He would go into an eloquent history lesson of why Maryland is the south yadayadayada.  Of course he had dimples and was always smiling.  He gave sailors nicknames and told me not to be so uptight.  He called me “sugar” or something and I would just roll my eyes without the thought of  sexual harassment ever creeping into my head.  I worked 8 times harder than him, 15 hours a day longer than him and he was the captain’s favorite.

Unlike him, I was a COMPLETELY different person at work than in my personal life.  He focused on relationships at work while I focused on checklists and regulations.  What are you like at work?

Here is an article on how men and women are different at work by Penelope Trunk.

(photo by Sam Howzit, via Flickr)