IM Misuse

Admin Gal would like to clarify the that the 'INSTANT' in Instant Messaging is just that - messages that are INSTANT, BRIEF, QUICK, etc.

Too often, Admin Gal's colleagues have been taken to creating long dialogues that would be better suited to other mediums, such as - email, telephone conversations, smoke signals or even carrier pigeons.

Instant Messaging is a very intrusive method of communication. No, Admin Gal was not born in the stone-age. She believes that there is a time and a place for all methods of communication.  Writing a novel in an IM is not appropriate business practice - EVER.

Please Instant Message responsibly.

Driving Me to Drink

There are good days, then there are days when Admin Gal is driven around the bend, through the woods, and possibly to a beverage (reader's choice, Admin Gal prefers highly caffeinated or sugared).

Calling Admin Gal three times in 15 minutes will not make an assigned task go faster, a phone call be returned faster, or an email magically show up in the in box. Nor will pinging Admin Gal incessantly via instant messaging make any of the aforementioned things happened.

Admin Gal's tips for NOT aggravating her, thereby insuring your survival for another day, are as follows:

1. Trust her to do her job.
2. Lack of planning on your part will not mean Admin Gal will take the blame.
3. Holding back information will only make you look bad.
4. Admin Gal documents EVERYTHING, don't ever think otherwise.
5. P-Cards are audited, don't ask Admin Gal to go outside company guidelines.
6. Admin Gal is not a Butler, personal servant, nanny, nor a maid.

Tools of the Trade

We all have tools by which we do our jobs. Tools we love and tools that we hate. Admin Gal has a particular tool that she LOATHES with a vengeful passion.

Instant Messaging - the bane of corporate America!

Instant Messaging, by itself, is a benign program. Used to say 'Hi!', send short, fast snippets of information back and forth. Pass time with.

In the corporate environment, it has become the tool of the DEVIL! DEVIL I say! There is no nicety in Instant Messaging. No 'Hey do you have a minute?'. Worse, people write tomes in it. Send an email already!

The box just rudely pops up on top of whatever you are doing and demands your attention. Your status might be 'Busy', frankly few people actually pay attention to that. There are days when Admin Gal has 17 different conversations going at once. All relevant to her job.

Her boss insists that she stays logged in, he's allowed to make that request. Everyone else, needs to be very polite. The minute Admin Gal figures out how, she's going to develop an IM defense system that will destroy annoying people that are too rude and lazy to pick up the telephone.

Just because my status shows I'm 'Available', doesn't mean I'm available to you.