We humans are an imperfect species. Despite our quirks and fallacies, we come together in the workplace to perform tasks and receive compensation for completing those tasks. However, there are those that feel the office is part of their personal space and act upon compulsions better left for a different time and place. Professionalism is not the term defined by these compulsions and examples of poor actions in the workplace are outlined in the following.
Personal Hygiene
The office bathroom is not and should not be the area designed in which to bathe. Despite the long evening you may have had the night before, please bathe in your own home. The sight of a partially unclothed person holding a washcloth and soaping their armpits first thing in the morning does not lead to a productive day for your fellow workers.
Also, please choose to clip your fingernails or toenails for another time. The sound of clip, clip, clipping of nails is distracting. You never know when or where the errant nail will land. If the nail piece lands in your supervisor's coffee, you may find that you have quickly risen to the top of the termination pipeline.
On a side note, if utilizing the toilet facilities, please remember that there are others that use them as well. Offices have paid staff or contractors that do a pretty fair job at keeping them clean. If you have doubt as to the cleanliness of the toilet seat, do not stand on top of the seat to utilize the facilities. Eventually, all office staff will discover the guilty party and ostracism is a lonely place.
Telephone Etiquette
A sub-title such as the one above should be self-explanatory. Telephone conversations should always be professional and polite. Unfortunately, there are always those few employees that feel entitled to use a business telephone to carry on personal business.
Never should you use the business phone for intensely personal conversations, especially if you're in a cubicle setting. Your cubicle mate will not appreciate the argument with your spouse concerning his contraction of the latest sexually transmitted disease. If you wish to keep your private life private, wait until you get home. While sometimes personal conversations are necessary, keep them to a minimum.
Fundraisers: Catalogs-Trinkets and Food
Unless your employer is sponsoring a fundraiser, please use your own time to promote your latest cause. Your co-workers will thank you. Little Johnny's baseball team or little Susie's cheerleading squad will not go bankrupt if the current promotional catalog is passed during the lunch break or after hours. At that time, feel free to use whatever guilt measures you need to promote the cause.
The Boss and Gossip
Above all, the main man, head cheese, king of the food chain, whatever you wish to call him, is to be respected at all times. Just because you saw him in the hallway with his tongue down the throat of his executive secretary, doesn't mean you should advertise this fact. There are other options available to you for his indiscretions. Use them wisely.
If you're not prepared to substantiate any comments you make about others, keep them to yourself. Untrue gossip is destructive to all parties involved. Remember this the next time you visit with your cubicle buddy about Mr. Smith's need for breast support; you may be talking to his cousin. What you think is a funny off-hand remark may be hurtful to others.
Internet Usage
Our employers provide computers for a reason. They are tools to make our jobs easier. While some employers allow internet usage at lunch or before/after work, please be considerate of that luxury. During business hours, they are not tools to locate a new soul mate, find new recipes, do personal banking, or watch steamy prurient videos. Don't be fooled into thinking that no one will notice. Most businesses employ programs to measure internet use by their workers. This is not an infringement of your privacy. They have the right, justifiably so, to assure that business is being conducted in a proper and productive manner.
The bottom line is that we spend a great deal of waking hours in the company of our fellow workers. Ultimately, it is our responsibility to make the time on the clock as pleasant as possible. With a little consideration, the end of the day may arrive just a little sooner than expected.