Friendly nod in office hallway - no response! - Page 2

Faltrad · #21 12.05.2011, 22:00

	Quote:	Kittster
	The same thing happens at my workplace, people even ignoring a friendly "good morning". So I decided to bring it up at the next "we are a cool company and all best buddies" thing, told one of the "high and mighty" that some members of staff were behaving this way. Maaaan, he almost had a fit, practically asking me to name and shame. The funny thing was that the culprits all did a 180° headspin when I said my piece...

I remember a story like that. Oh wait... it was Eastern Germany 1985.

Wollishofener · #22 13.05.2011, 00:26

	Quote:
	The Swiss company I started work at when I first came to Switzerland was almost obsessive about Guten Morgen-ing everyone then Schönen Abig-ing everyone when they were leaving with a liberal dose of En Guete-ing at lunchtime. Being the grumpy-first-thing-in-the-morning Brit that I am, I wished for long enough that they would keep a lid on it - I'm just not a springy "Good Morning!!" type of person. Now it seems, reading the above, I must have been in a rather unique situation. As for the smiling and nodding, I don't think it's really a cultural thing here - they seem to fall back on the more formal "Gruetzi" or nothing at all. I tend to smile or nod out of habit but don't get too uptight if people don't always reciprocate. Also, if you are expecting it in the corridors at work, people are often preoccupied with projects, meetings or other such work so by the time they've figured out they are being smiled or nodded at, the moment has passed.

No no no, your first company here was not unique but is the general thing. Outside of the working place it depends on the environment. To greet each other even if not even know where the other side was working at the airport always was THE normal thing and still is. So, it was/is in the cargo-rail-station and in the bonded-warehouses. I cannot tell you about the banks ................. , but it is as in your first CH company among (menial) workers, people in the transport business, etc.

Kittster · #23 13.05.2011, 01:18

	Quote:	Carrie F
	Well, I somehow take a bit of comfort in knowing that I'm not the only person who has noticed a lack of returned smiles here. "Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore..."

The people not greeting secretaries on my floor were from our London, Munich and Argentina offices, it's not a Swiss thing... Indeed, our Swiss CEO greets everyone and asks how they are.

PaddyG · #24 13.05.2011, 01:46

Someone nodded and said "morning" to me at work the other week. Don't know him from Adam, so I ignored the twat.

#25 13.05.2011, 05:55

	Quote:	Snoopy
	... saying "Achtung bissiger Hund!" (In other words, beware of the biting dog). I got quite a kick out of it and discovered that the Swiss do have a sense of humour. It's just buried very very deep.

Ok that's quite degrading and embarrassing.

#26 13.05.2011, 08:23

	Quote:	jacek
	.... Soon I started adding proverbial "Grützi!"

Please don't, its "grüetzi"

jacek · #27 13.05.2011, 08:36

	Quote:	JoeShelton
	Please don't, its "grüetzi"

Ok! So next time I will use Guchi-Guchi

#28 13.05.2011, 08:45

My "swiss" is not that good, what does that mean? Sounds nice though, I am sure you'll get some reaction back

#29 13.05.2011, 09:04

You'll be better off not using it

	Quote:	JoeShelton
	My "swiss" is not that good, what does that mean? Sounds nice though, I am sure you'll get some reaction back

Swissmountainair · #30 13.05.2011, 09:05

To be honest I've found exactly the same thing in offices in London - some people have an energy and charm about them and will smile and say hello whilst others look grim, miserable and waaaayyy too serious and ignore you.

Whenever met with a silent response to a greeting I do tend to repeat myself at a so-loud a deaf person could feel the vibrations volume. That, if not producing a returned greeting, does tend to make the miserable person twitch and jump.

Calm yourself in the knowledge that those who usually act like they are brain surgeons and way too serious to stoop to exchanging pleasantries in corridors have a tendency to be unimportant self-important frustrated middle manager types who you would likely not want to get bogged down into a conversation with anyway. They probably spend their weekends in anoraks watching planes at Zurich airport.

Of course other times it could just be that the person is immersed in their own little world of work and have shut off the outside for a few minutes.

mirfield · #31 13.05.2011, 09:10

Morning Swedishguy.

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mirfield · #32 13.05.2011, 10:12

	Quote:	mirfield
	Morning Swedishguy.

	Quote:	swedishguy
	.

olygirl · #33 13.05.2011, 10:16

Are you wearing deoderant?
Are your teeth clean?
Are your clothes clean?
Is there a rumour about you that you don't know about?

C.H. · #34 13.05.2011, 11:44

I get the feeling that some people at my office who are walking around every day wishing "en guete" to everybody are overdoing it a little.

swedishguy · #35 13.05.2011, 11:45

Since im new at this place its amazing how a tiny situation like this affects me:

@ Nodding at obvious superior/senior manager in office:

- If recieve nod response: Getting a feeling of equalness apart from titles and a warm, "welcome-to-the-company" fuzzy feeling inside.

- if recieve no nod response: Feeling unworthy of managers attention, like a pathetic 15-year old mailroom boy and/or a person who are about to get fired but doesnt know it yet.

Clearly, these feelings last for about 2 seconds after the incident and then i move on with my life.

oferet · #36 13.05.2011, 11:46

I have noticed that people who expect to be greeted will first make eye contact.

mirfield · #37 13.05.2011, 11:56

@ An obvious subordinate/proletariat nods at me in office:

- If I give no nod response: "Hmmm. Odd boy. Still, better get to the next meeting. There's coffee and donuts".

- if I give a nod response: "Hmmm. Yes. He'll do for the next job purge. Those coffee and donut meetings don't pay for themselves".

Clearly, these feelings last for about 2 seconds after the incident (except for the sacking bit) and then I move on to my coffee and donuts.

gata · #38 13.05.2011, 13:46

	Quote:	nickatbasel
	Interestingly, most people where I work will return a nod or good morning. Around where I live - which I don't consider to be the middle of Zürich, people you pass by will not initiate a "grüezi" - but they will return one. In my parents' village in Yorkshire, people will always wish good morning / afternoon without being prompted. Perhaps it's a big city thing. I remember on a weekend trip to Appenzell many years ago, Mrs nickatbasel and I arrived at the train station with large rucksacks and as we made our way to the B+B we had booked, it started raining cats and dogs. About 2 secs later a car pulled up and asked where we were headed - we mentioned the B+B and the woman driving told us to hop in and drove us there. The next day hiking up Kronburg, a group of teenagers having a BBQ invited us to have a drink and a Klöpfer. Cheers, Nick

So true

I was in a village in Yorkshire (Beverley if you must know) and a guy said goodmorning. I had the biggest shock of my life!

swedishguy · #39 13.05.2011, 13:52

	Quote:	oferet
	I have noticed that people who expect to be greeted will first make eye contact.

True, but sometimes the eye contact can be very quick and hard to read.

This, in turn, could create the very awkward "late-nod", where you find yourself nodding just as you pass the person, and your nod is clearly slighly outside the nodees field of vision.

Nodding to invisible people is probably considered strange behaviour.

Soixante_neuf · #40 13.05.2011, 13:56

	Quote:
	The Swiss company I started work at when I first came to Switzerland was almost obsessive about Guten Morgen-ing everyone then Schönen Abig-ing everyone when they were leaving with a liberal dose of En Guete-ing at lunchtime.

Me too - this did my head in at the beginning..!

In the French part (i've no idea the otherside of the cheese fence) its normal to walk round and shake everyones hand in a meeting room before sitting down. All with eye contact obviously. Maybe again after the meeting as well. Similar rules apply in an open-plan office.

I'd definitely take a bit of head down mumbled greeting sometimes