The office tea round – something that should be so simple and yet is fraught with ridiculous complications.
Have you made your fair share? Which mug should you use? What happens if there are no tea bags, milk or sugar? Who is responsible for buying the replacements?
I used to refuse to drink tea at work because I couldn’t be bothered getting involved in the office politics.
I’ve been in offices where you had to chuck money in a pot so that replacement supplies could be bought, in order to ensure that everyone was paying their way.
I’ve been in offices where everybody bought their own milk, which led to an extremely full fridge that was full of milk. That then led to debates on whose milk would be used if guests or customers from outside the office wanted a cup of tea.
So I can understand, as new research is showing, why people would want to go to Starbucks or Costa for a coffee. It simply gets rid of the office politics.
Sure, it might cost more, but if it leads to fewer arguments in the office then perhaps it isn’t a bad thing.
Of course, not all of us want to spend unlimited amounts of cash on hot drinks, so it still brings the debate back to who makes what.
Another thing I used to also hate about the office tea round was having to wait for the kettle to boil.
Luckily technology has helped solve this problem, with already-boiled water meaning you don’t have to hang around for the kettle to boil.
Apparently if you don’t have this luxury though, you can start boiling a kettle through your smartphone.
One company is even using a random generator to decide who makes the tea round.
Perhaps the simplest solution is to just make our own tea. Some might say that this isn’t good for team morale, but if it avoids arguments and awkward situations, maybe this could be the solution?
Whatever you think, the debate will no doubt rage on.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-39155646