I never stay late at work. is that normal?

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7 Comments

So I know today people and employers obsess over the notion that staying late means you are a good employee, almost disregarding all other criteria. (Although I am lucky my current work place doesn't quite live by that, I am still bothered by this belief.) I however, am able to walk out at around 5, every single day. It's really awkward, because I am the first to leave everyday, and when I am all finished and leaving, people are still plugging away at their computers. I know there are a few reasons why. I arrive quite earlier than everyone else and I do have a history of being extremely efficient. I know I'm not a bad employee because I have NEVER left any work unfinished when leaving, finish my tasks well ahead of deadlines, in addition to getting good feedback at reviews. Having said all that, I still HATE the guilty feeling of being the first to walk out when people go for their 3rd filling of coffee to pump out more hours. Am I over analyzing? Is everyone else just less efficient? Anyone else experience something like this?

Voting Results
78% Normal
Based on 46 votes (36 yes)
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Comments ( 7 )
  • Ono
    12 years ago | pl

    This is how it should be for everyone. You do your work for the hours they pay you, then you go home. You think businesses give a damn about your life or how much people waste of their own time doing work without pay?

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  • dom180
    12 years ago

    You have no obligation to take unpayed overtime. If everyone refused to take it, they'd have to pay everybody more or hire more staff, which would probably be a good thing.

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  • dappled
    12 years ago

    I have the kind of role where me and my boss often work until midnight. It'd be later but the car park closes at midnight. He has both a car and the key to the office hence when he leaves, I have to leave too so he can lock up. Plenty of people in our office leave one second after 5pm. I don't judge them for it. There's no work they can be doing after 5pm and they're not getting paid to be there so why should they? I'm not getting paid after 5pm either, but it's my choice whether I put in extra hours or not. My choices shouldn't determine my feelings about anyone else, and they don't.

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    • JewBear
      12 years ago

      This is the kind of answer I am looking for. I know it makes sense that I am the first to leave, but I don't want to be judge negatively by people I have to interact with everyday. I guess as a follow-up to my original question to you office red-eye warriors, how do you judge others that leave on-time? If you pump out significantly later hours on a regular basis, what is causing that while others are able to leave at a normal time?

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      • goatmeal
        7 years ago

        People who work late have a combination of problems going on. These are all genuine problems, working to excess is an addictive behavior and is maladaptive and the more people who do it, the worse off our society is. You are a good person for working within the hours you agreed to work and getting the work done. Most people who stay late have a combination of these problems:

        1) A lack of investment in their own personal life. Even people with families and children are often avoiding the complexities of having a rich personal life in favor of throwing themselves at work. Perhaps you are a millionaire investor or you work three minimum-wage jobs. In either case, your personal life suffers and you are choosing to sacrifice it. Unless you're pulling in $150K (a reasonable price-point for a single person to be putting in 60-80 hours), you're a buster-ass mark, a sucker, and a loser for doing this.

        2) An inability to focus and get things done, combined with some of #1. People who stay at work to avoid their personal lives tend to make their work expand to fit the amount of time they're willing to sit around at work sucking up oxygen.

        3) An inability to stick up for themselves. People who work late are often pathetic losers who refuse to improve their office culture by sticking up for themselves. This can be fixed, being pathetic is a transient state, but often requires outside help. I've been there, done that, greatly appreciated having a co-worker come on board who reminded me of what's really important.

        4) An honestly pathetic tendency to value one's total life contribution as the sum of their workplace contributions. Nerds especially tend to overvalue the time they spend working because of #1. I will agree that some people can convince themselves that work really is awesome, they are passionate about their jobs, etc, but I guarantee you they will eventually burn out and be resentful and miserable. It can take years to happen, but workaholics are always sacrificing something else more important in order to devote themselves to work. It can easily take 10-15 years to realize you've been wasting your life and the pain of realization is great.

        Keep doing what you're doing, I know this is 5 years old but I felt a passionate reply was called for. If you're running your own business or pulling in a huge salary, working to excess can be "worth it," but I guarantee you, the children of workaholics grow up with attachment issues, personality disorders, etc, regardless of whether their parents are rich or poor. Chris Rock had a joke that he doesn't want his daughter to end up on a stripper pole -- well, better be present in her life enough for her to notice. It's really that simple. For people too young to have a family or with no concerns for a family, you still need to develop your own personal life and passions so that you're a complete worthwhile human being with friends and relationships that keep you satisfied as a human being. Being addicted to work is super damaging and workaholics tend to take on other maladaptive behaviors like alcoholism at some point in their decline.

        Poor people have no choice; well-to-do people should not screw up the job pool by doing more work than any person should handle. Stick up for yourselves America, your labor has value and giving it away for free is idiotic and devalues the actual finite lives of every living person.

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  • [Old Memory]
    12 years ago

    So what's wrong here? You arrive earlier than everyone, it's only normal for you to leave before anyone.

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  • Dillanfire
    12 years ago

    Unfortunately very few managers appreciate and acknowledge early starters. However most if not all managers notice employees who leave early or on time. Better to put in that extra time after office hours than before.

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