Offices are Messy!

I have made a shocking discovery during my time interning here in D.C.- offices are messy!

Now, I don’t mean literally, in the sense that there is garbage and clutter everywhere… although I am sure there are those offices filled with their fair share of litter and disorganization. What I’m talking about is that, no matter how prestigious, well funded, and well led your office may be, there will always be an element of confusion and chaos.

For a planner like me, this realization came as quite a shock. I love interning for a government organization, and assisting in a department known for its strict adherence to guidelines and procedures which produce predictable and accurate results, because it gives me a sense of control over outcomes and situations. In my workplace, I enjoy having everything in its place, and having the confidence that comes from knowing exactly what will be produced as a result of my efforts. Life, however, and the unpredictable, do happen.

Sometimes the water cooler delivery runs late, and the office is without a water dispenser for a few days. While this may cause a flurry of frantic confusion as thirsty workers congregate around the empty cooler, it is not the end of the world. The worst thing that could happen is being forced to fork over the two dollars and fifty cents in the downstairs café for a bottle of water… or dehydration… but that’s beside the point.

Sometimes the copy machine isn’t working, because someone forgot to order additional toner and it is now on backorder for the next week. While this may cause everyone in the office to use another department’s copier in the meantime, it should not be a source of frustration. The worst thing that could happen is that you jam the other department’s copier almost beyond repair, and spend nearly forty minutes attempting to fix it… but that’s not my focus here.

Sometimes the project that you have been working on, felt was accurate, and turned over to the next phase of the process with a different agency falls through their cracks. While this may cause a huge delay in the overall completion of your project, it does not mean you are a failure. The worst thing that could happen is that your supervisor doesn’t understand that it wasn’t your fault and fires you, but wait…you can’t fire a volunteer… but that shouldn’t be my attitude.

My point is that no matter how well prepared you are, no matter how good you are at your job, nothing in life is perfect. People make mistakes, stuff happens, and not everything can be completely controlled… and that’s ok. There are times you simply must let go, trust that your best efforts are enough, and decide that all of the little things that plague your sanity are really not so important after all. So for a planner like me, this has come as an uncomfortable and yet somewhat relieving realization. Offices, and life in general, are messy. I might as well embrace it!