How do you answer generic questions from co-workers??

[Lorraine Manca]

lmao, its so funny to read the first post of this thread. because...THE WEEKEND QUEsTION IS SO ANNOYING. really im the exact same, for most of my off time i'm simply like a zombie recovering from the overstimulation and crap of the week and dreading the crap to come. or staring at the clock trying to warp time or force it in my mind to go slower before i have to go back out again. i have no life worth mentioning. thats awkward to say to people though, and lying is way too much effort so...say something extremely vague and in the same breath grill and interrogate the hell out of them about their own weekend, maybe they'll learn to stop asking

 

[teandtoast]

Just say thats none of your business and punch them right on their face!!lol.. You could either do that or just tell them you had to do stuff with your family or brother etc.,

haha
I usually just say saw friends (even though sometimes dont) I dont usually go into full extent of geting drunk etc

 

[zenithhh24]

Ya, your coworkers are just trying to be polite. Just say a canned answer if you are worried about it.
"Oh, I had a great weekend. It was so nice out wasn't it! What'd you do?"
"Oh good, caught up on my sleep."
"Just hung out, how about you?"

People aren't trying to interrogate you they probably are just trying to be nice and friendly. Dont take it the wrong way just say something simple then ask them back. Don't try to scare them away, thats a move in the wrong direction.

 

[Orbital]

I used to be really ashamed to admit I didn't do anything social on the weekend, but it doesn't bother me as much as it used to. My new boss is constantly asking "How's life", "how was your weekend?", "how are things?". I know it's just because he's new and he's trying to get to know his team but it still bugs me lol.

 

[Marletta]

People ask these questions just to seem sociable or nice. They really don't care what you did on the weekend or for the holidays. It's conversation for the sake of conversation. People feel they have to ask you that because you are their coworker and need to seem nice. It's similar to greeting someone with "Hi, how are you?" They really don't care how you are or how you are feeling, it's just a greeting. Most of society is hung up on perception. They want to be perceived as being friendly and not aloof. A few years ago, I got a bad performance review because I wasn't "friendly" or "approachable". Nevermind my work was outstanding and I did a great job on the projects I was assigned to. You can be a complete and total screw up on the job but if you are not a squeaky wheel and are super nice to everyone, everyone thinks you do a great job. Hell, I have seen some people get promoted!
It sucks but that is the way it is.

 

[Orbital]

People ask these questions just to seem sociable or nice. They really don't care what you did on the weekend or for the holidays. It's conversation for the sake of conversation. People feel they have to ask you that because you are their coworker and need to seem nice. It's similar to greeting someone with "Hi, how are you?" They really don't care how you are or how you are feeling, it's just a greeting. Most of society is hung up on perception. They want to be perceived as being friendly and not aloof. A few years ago, I got a bad performance review because I wasn't "friendly" or "approachable". Nevermind my work was outstanding and I did a great job on the projects I was assigned to. You can be a complete and total screw up on the job but if you are not a squeaky wheel and are super nice to everyone, everyone thinks you do a great job. Hell, I have seen some people get promoted!
It sucks but that is the way it is.

Yeah that does suck. Bosses tend to promote the people that are friendliest to them. I've seen someone get promoted to manager that was an ass to a lot of my coworkers but always super nice to the other managers. It's discouraging but I guess the best thing is to accept that this is the way it is and make an effort to be more sociable at work

 

[jaypee06]

i just say whatever pops into my mind and pretend it was longer than it actually was... and then i quickly turn the tables and ask what they got up to and just barrage them with questions about what they did...

 

[NinjaLikesToast]

It usually depends on the person that asks.. Sometimes I will completely lie about going out and having fun with "friends" if I don't know the person much. Other times I will pretty much tell them I did nothing but play games and read on my weekend.

The only catch is that I rarely get weekends off :S

 

[Ravens]

i just say whatever pops into my mind and pretend it was longer than it actually was... and then i quickly turn the tables and ask what they got up to and just barrage them with questions about what they did...

lol that's usually the tactic I use. Most people are comfortable talking about their own activities though and appreciate the interest (I guess that's considered "normal") so it's a win win really...

 

[shyguy83]

I dread the early morning small talk every day. I work in Chicago and will stand around the corner to make sure there are not any coworkers about to arrive, just so I don't get trapped in the elevator with them and have to talk about my doing nothing. I would NEVER ask someone first, but if I do get asked I will usually say I didn't do much other than watch a game on TV or something. It's funny because I always forget to ask back what they did and they will give me a blank stare while waiting for me to say, "What about you?" 99% of the time they have some amazing story or list of fun sounding things that make me feel even more pathetic.

 

[commenter39]

apollo has a point noone gives a **** about that stuff,someone who cares about that is usually a freak

 

[LadyWench]

Eh. Entirely depends on my mood and the person I'm talking to. If I'm somewhat close with the person, I'll tell them the truth. If it's someone I don't know all that well, I'll just tell them I spent most of the day on the Internet and watching movies. It's true, but I just don't go into details as to why I didn't leave the house or do anything spectacular.

 

[sevenroses]

I can relate. I hate how other coworkers talk about how they partied or go to the bar or did some wild **** on the weekend. Well I guess I'm lucky that I work with coworkers that don't even ask that question anymore. My coworkers are actually planning a get together this Saturday but I rather spend my weekend away from things or people that remind me of work.