- Spiders and chairs and stairs, oh my! Executives admit to being spooked by bugs and tripping all over the office
- Managers also confess to falling asleep, ripping their pants and breaking the coffee machine
Think you’ve had a bad day at the office? In a new survey from staffing firm OfficeTeam, senior managers were asked to recount their most embarrassing moments at work. Here are some of their responses:
- “I screamed because a coworker put a spider on me.”
- “My swivel chair moved as I was sitting down and I ended up on the floor.”
- “I turned to talk to someone and walked into the elevator door.”
- “I fell and broke a tooth while running up the stairs.”
- “I came out of the bathroom with toilet paper stuck to my shoe.”
- “I vomited onstage while receiving an award.”
- “I fell asleep during a meeting and had to be woken up.”
- “I mistakenly went into the women’s restroom.”
- “I swore after a phone call without realizing the person was still on the line.”
- “I couldn’t find my car after happy hour.”
- “I showed up for work on a Saturday because I thought it was Friday.”
View a slideshow of the research: https://www.slideshare.net/roberthalf/25-of-the-most-embarrassing-work-stories.
Tech troubles were a common theme:
- “Everyone showed up for a meeting on the wrong day because I had incorrectly scheduled it.”
- “I sent an email badmouthing a person to that individual.”
- “I got caught hiding in the bathroom using my phone.”
- “I broke the coffee machine, and it started spraying nonstop.”
Others suffered a case of mistaken identity:
- “I gave an award to the wrong person during a recognition ceremony.”
- “I greeted two clients who were sisters as mother and daughter.”
- “I accidentally called a male customer ‘ma’am’ on the phone.”
Several respondents experienced wardrobe woes:
- “I ripped my pants while playing hacky sack and had to get a new pair.”
- “I wore mismatched shoes to work.”
- “I spilled food on my outfit during lunch with a client.”
- “I didn’t realize until after a meeting that my zipper was down.”
And these bloopers gave managers something to chew on:
- “I sneezed while eating and food flew everywhere.”
- “I made a cake to celebrate an employee’s birthday and found out she was allergic to it.”
- “I ate the wrong lunch out of the refrigerator.”
“No one’s immune from the occasional embarrassing moment at work,” said Brandi Britton, a district president for OfficeTeam. “As awkward as office blunders can be, employees should remember they’re not the end of the world. The best way to bounce back is to keep your cool, own up to mistakes and laugh along.”
About the Research
The survey was developed by OfficeTeam and conducted by an independent research firm. It includes responses from more than 600 senior managers at companies with 20 or more employees in the United States and Canada.About OfficeTeam
OfficeTeam, a Robert Half company, is the nation’s leading staffing service specializing in the temporary placement of highly skilled office and administrative support professionals. The company has 300 locations worldwide. For additional information, visit roberthalf.com/officeteam. Follow the OfficeTeam blog at roberthalf.com/officeteam/blog for career and management advice.