In the past, I always thought the hardest thing about the workplace was the work itself. Only later did I slowly realize that interpersonal relationships are actually another kind of invisible required course.
Our company is divided into headquarters and the factory side. Headquarters is in Taipei, and the factory is in Taoyuan. I work at the factory, so the units I interact with most are the production line, production control, and materials—those on-site departments. Some sales staff come from headquarters to the factory a few fixed days a week to handle matters.
Among them is a saleswoman, Miss R, who spends about two or three days a week at the factory and also eats lunch in the employee cafeteria. As for me, I’ve always eaten alone in the company. It’s not that I’m being ostracized; I’m just too lazy to socialize. Plus, I want to finish eating quickly and go back for a nap, so I deliberately speed up my eating. If I eat with others, I occasionally have to chat and socialize, which slows down my eating pace. After all, there’s still a ton of work waiting in the afternoon, so I really need a good rest.
Yesterday, Miss R happened to sit across from me with two other Taoyuan sales staff, and we naturally chatted for a bit. The atmosphere was normal. I didn’t think much of it. Then, just before the end of the workday, one of the Taoyuan saleswomen, Miss L, suddenly came over secretly and said to me: “Don’t get too close to her. She’s really good at fishing for information, and she’s very gossipy. Be careful—the things you say might become someone else’s leverage.” She added: “Also, the other saleswoman you ate with yesterday is good friends with her, so watch what you say too.”
I was a bit stunned at the moment.
Because I don’t have any particular feelings toward Miss R herself—we basically have no interaction. As for the other saleswoman she mentioned, I’ve at most been annoyed by her work style sometimes, but it’s nothing personal. I never even imagined that such subtle relationship chains existed among others.
Then this afternoon, another sales colleague came over and said something similar. He even laughed and said that yesterday when they saw me eating with Miss R, Miss L immediately said, “Oh no, I forgot to remind her not to talk too much.”
I burst out laughing when I heard that and replied, “Are you guys taking turns trying to brainwash me or what?”
Although I joked on the surface, I actually felt a bit emotional inside.
Because my previous work environment was relatively simple—people mostly just argued over work or had differing positions. There were rarely these kinds of “interpersonal observation” type reminders. Only after joining this company did I slowly discover that the workplace really isn’t just about doing the job well. Some people chatting with you aren’t necessarily just chatting. Some things you think are just casual complaints might change flavor after going around the circle. Especially when a company has many people and complex departments, relationships between people are sometimes harder to understand than work processes. Who gets along with whom, who doesn’t get along, what can be said, and what’s better left unsaid—many of these things only become clear after being there for a while.
I’m actually very grateful to these colleagues for being willing to remind me. It shows that at least they don’t mean me any harm and don’t want me to step into a pit for no reason.
But it also made me realize once again that in the workplace, besides learning how to work, you really do have to learn how to “speak.”
Sometimes it’s not that things can’t be said, but you need to know in front of whom and to what extent you can say them. The saying “one cannot be without a guarded heart against others” really seems to be something you gradually understand after entering society.