As I observe the desks of my colleagues over the years I notice that people bring a lot of their home to work, in the form of aunt Agatha's recipe book, the kid doodles and legos and latest birthday necklaces. Cute but please keep it by your bedside. Unless you also sleep at work (like Castanza then you are excused).
Perhaps because they also bring work to their homes in the form of their crackberries, iphones or laptop computers and keep fingering it even on weekends. I subscribe to neither. I do work out of my home at times and that is business hours. I do not take my home life to work either. I have no other living material growing in the office space or showcase family pictures or any other knick knacks that people seem to accumulate over time including some wine their former boss passed them three Xmases ago. I make an effort to also ditch all paper since theoretically we are living in the land of paperless offices.
I am not a fan of any organized sport or religion either so that helps to declutter my surroundings. Same with all manners of food products - which in America you can procure within minutes. So why keep them at your desk? Frankly the desk is also an outdated man made concoction since you can connect remotely any time any where. Marissa Mayer at Yahoo thinks different. But hey to each her own.
Unless you are in a classroom type setting or where you need to enjoy the complete chemistry of the larger populations you are not adding any incremental value to a conversation or deal by just being there (with or without your accouterments).
You are a farmer you have to be in the office - you cannot remotely trim your crop or check for infections - at least not yet. Same with food processing or medical advice and services. Some of the latter can be managed through a camera and a high speed data connection but it has its shortcomings.
Finally on the subject of books that people like to show off including trophies and titles and awards - that accumulate space in their offices - they are more a distraction than anything. If I came to talk to you I do not really care if you got a five year award for outstanding service. I am interested in your servicing my needs now while I am INSITTING!
On an informal mission to read one book a week as long as the eyes allow for such ambition. Fiction or non is not important as long as it entertains and /or educates. To that end the past few weeks have brought a bounty in the form of some wonderful and then not so engaging literature. Among the notables are - Non fiction category: 1. Good arguments by Bo Seo (how to handle a dispute or debate the most efficient way possible) 2. Genesis by Eric Schmidt (and former US Secy of State Henry Kissinger, who recently passed) - how AI might affect our lives as we know it 3. One in a billion - Zarna Garg (an autobiographical look at an Indian born American woman with a bindi narrated in a standup format - yes it is at times cliched but still funny) Fiction: 1. Personal by Lee Child (a vigilante story with Jack Reacher the giant, nomad protagonist of Child's novels goes hunting for a sniper) 2. Ramayana unraveled by Ami Ganatra (she might disagree about it being a work of fiction but oh wel...
The books in your office show how intelligent you were ..the tense is past, unfortunately. Present is there for all to see, in plain view.
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