FT.com | Dear Lucy | ‘Someone took my chair. Would it be petty to make a fuss?’

April 24, 2008

‘Someone took my chair. Would it be petty to make a fuss?’

I have been out of the office on a three-day seminar and got back to find my chair has been replaced with a less comfortable one. I suspect a new colleague who started his job while I was away, whose cubicle is right across from mine, and every time I see him I feel cross. Should I get in early one morning and swap the chair over again? But what if it wasn’t him who was involved in this office larceny? Perhaps the cleaner may have removed my chair - unlikely but still possible. Should I confront him, or would that look petty? Or do I just put up with a chair that is uncomfortable and is not mine?

Research associate, male, 23

Lucy’s Answer

Your problem has provoked a storm of outrage on FT.com. Dozens of readers have called you a baby and a fool and are cross with you (and me) for wasting their time on such piffle. I am taking no notice, and I suggest you take none too.

Of course your problem is petty. But so is office life. Indeed, on the spectrum of petty things your chair is at the serious end of the range. You spend almost as much time in it as you do in your bed and to have it stolen is an outrage.

First, there is the problem of adjusting to another one: the chair I’m sitting on has an improbably large number of levers that work in unexpected ways. Then there is the primal attachment one feels to one’s chair. The three bears expressed this well: “Who’s been sitting in my chair?” they roared - and their chairs weren’t even stolen.

Furthermore, one’s chair is a home from home in the office, and to have it pinched when one’s back is turned does not feel nice.

So what to do? Chair theft is a mean trick, but is fine in retaliation. Indeed, as the chair belongs to neither of you, a state of anarchy prevails. He took your chair in a raid when you were away. You take it back in a raid when he is away.

If it turns out that he didn’t really take it, then never mind. He has had it for only a few days so may not notice. Don’t think of discussing it with him in a reasonable way, as this isn’t a reasonable matter.

Once you have the chair back you must make sure it doesn’t happen again. One of my colleagues reduces his risk of chair theft by making such a fuss that thieves steal other chairs for a quiet life. I don’t recommend this for you: at 23 you need to earn more stripes before becoming a chair hysteric.

My own approach has been developed unwittingly: I have spilt so much food on my chair that no one else wants it.

April 24th, 2008 in Uncategorised | Permalink

73 Responses to “‘Someone took my chair. Would it be petty to make a fuss?’”

Comments

Oh dear God, “would it be petty?”. Yes! is the answer. Make a phone call to the occupational health or facilities people, ask them to order a chair of the requisite quality and comfort straight away (feigning a mild back condition if you need to), and get over it.
Posted by: Louise W | April 24th, 2008 at 8:46 am | Report this comment
Don`t you think that this is the least important problem in working envirement and business? I assume, you have difficulty with telling directly about your concerns and problems. Why don`t you just ask your colleagues about it? If you get no exact answer, just apply for those responsible for supplying thye office with furniture. Just ask for another chair.
Posted by: Anna, 23, market analyst, female | April 24th, 2008 at 8:49 am | Report this comment
Oh, Grow Up!
Fight your battles over things worth fighting for not trivialities.
Posted by: Jo L, 40, F, Marketing Consultant | April 24th, 2008 at 8:50 am | Report this comment
And next week: “Who moved my Blackberry?”
Posted by: Jonathan, stockbroker, 47 (M) | April 24th, 2008 at 9:17 am | Report this comment
It’s all very well people saying things like grow up, but when it happens to you it can be damned irritating.

Like that scene from “The Simpsons” where Homer peels himself away from the sofa, it can take years to get a chair just so…

My solution? Steal it back, then ask questions. Business favours the bold, does it not?
Posted by: Mike, Vilnius, 33 | April 24th, 2008 at 9:19 am | Report this comment
I’ve seen and heard other examples of behavious which is irritating, like the graduate who came
from the US office for a few months to get job experience at the head office (in CH) where I worked. Our work day started at 08.00h and she often arrived as late as 08.45h, having to walk through an open-plan office (with her head down).
Another girl (Swiss) was leaving the firm and the boss let her see his proposed draft of the job reference he had written for her, which is the required procedure to get her agreement. Because he only wrote that she had performed her duties to his “full satisfaction” and not to his “fullest satisfaction” (every word in a Swiss reference has a hidden
meaning :-), she sniffed and sobbed at her desk for days, and would not accept the word “full”. In the end the boss gave in.

Bring in a chair of your own, which will ensure that you are really comfortable. And if HR ask any questions, you can tell them what happened to your previous chair….
Posted by: J.J. | April 24th, 2008 at 9:52 am | Report this comment
On my first day in my last job, there was no chair in my section of the office, so I took one from somewhere else. Later, this woman came over and started ranting at me, then took it back. Despite apologising she then told all of her cronies. I think you should either get up early and take it back, like you say, or just order another one. Give the guy the benefit of the doubt.
Posted by: Mir | April 24th, 2008 at 10:12 am | Report this comment
Are you kidding me? Is this really a problem for you? Send an office email requesting that the chair be returned and get on with real work! From your posted problem I can definately see that you are 23!
Posted by: Laura | April 24th, 2008 at 10:25 am | Report this comment
Was it really your chair, or was it Ernie Kessler’s until he retired? You need to check the serial number. It’s a serious matter for the office co-ordinator. Perhaps send a memo detailing your grievance to the head of HR, copied to all your colleagues and managers.

Or read “Then we came to the end”; something that appears vitally important today will soon seem petty and insignificant, even to you.
Posted by: B, age 38, lawyer | April 24th, 2008 at 10:27 am | Report this comment
You never actually own an office-provided chair, you merely look after it for the next generation. You have no better claim to any particular chair than the guy in the next cubicle - unless you buy one with your own money. I’d get a large, über-stylish, comfortable specimen of your own that looks sufficiently different from the rest to recover when thieved. Armed with a receipt that proves you paid for it, this would be neither petty nor fussy. Without one, it is both.
Posted by: Andrew, 34, male, lawyer | April 24th, 2008 at 10:42 am | Report this comment
Bring in a cushion and get on with your work.
Posted by: Sophie | April 24th, 2008 at 10:44 am | Report this comment
Food shortages,global warming,terrorism,banking
meltdown,chair theft…where will it all end.

GET A LIFE
Posted by: Stuart | April 24th, 2008 at 11:23 am | Report this comment
My chair got replaced with a broken-arm one, and I know who took it from me! I first thought I should steal it back, but then I thought he might take it back once again. So I ordered a new one — and that takes 3 weeks to arrive.
Posted by: Yangcan | April 24th, 2008 at 11:23 am | Report this comment
You must read Then we Came to the End by Joshua Ferris at once - an hilariously tragic novel of the pettiness and hopelesness of office life, where such as a swapped chair provides days of angst. Then go and hide in a cupboard.
Posted by: William, 59, male. lawyer | April 24th, 2008 at 11:26 am | Report this comment
I do not think this is a big deal. It has happened to me so many times! Especially when you work for big companies and you are in and out of the office all the time.

Just go and get it back!
Posted by: M from Manchester | April 24th, 2008 at 11:54 am | Report this comment
Problem:
This is termination notice via the back door ! Notice how a couple of people haven’t smiled at you today? The air-conditioning is a bit less fresh above you? Lucky you were able to keep head down and use the internet to find out who is behind this vile conspiracy.

Solution
Stand up from your chair, and use your voice to say ‘Has any body switched my chair while I was away ?’

Depending on the answer, you might get your old one back, or you can build a deep festering grudge to hold for the rest of your career in the company.
Posted by: Phil, 30s, sw1. | April 24th, 2008 at 12:02 pm | Report this comment
Is the bloke opposite you any of the following:

- better looking than you?
- wittier than you?
- better at the job than you?

This is not chair larceny, this is jealousy about the new ‘new guy’. Poor you.
Posted by: Ben, 28, consultant | April 24th, 2008 at 12:14 pm | Report this comment
You have written into one the Financial Times, which has a readership including the world’s business leaders, to ask about an uncomfortable chair. Who would you write to to ask about real business issues.

I am embarrassed on your behalf that you thought this was worth asking.
Posted by: james | April 24th, 2008 at 12:49 pm | Report this comment
When mummy has finished changing your nappies, you should ask your manager if you can have your chair back and let him/her sort it out.

Meanwhile, the rest of us may ask Ms Kellaway why the FT is charging us precious money to read this tripe.
Posted by: John, 40s, headhunter | April 24th, 2008 at 12:58 pm | Report this comment
Grow up and don’t be so petty and pathetic.
1. It was never YOUR Chair. It belongs to the company you work for.
2. Health and safety (or whatever they call themselves these days) usually perform desk assessments and can provide you with a new (better chair) without any hassel - they’ll even give you a full desk assessment, arranging your monitor height, keyboard/mouse placement, desk height etc.
3. Take a chill-pill and forget about this pathetic and stupid thing that if you ever made mention of in front of any colleagues you’d be laughed at for the rest of your time there!
4. If you’re really desperate and emotionally attached to the chair, perform a late night black-op to retrieve said precious piece of office furniture (and a few other nice things you see around the place (desk-lamps, staplers, post-its)…
Posted by: Yousef | April 24th, 2008 at 1:02 pm | Report this comment
The chair is a metaphor for your life - would you even ask this question if your life was at threat (anything more and you will not ask anything). Go for it without further delay and get the chair back from the suspected offender. While at it, make sure that you swipe a couple of more things like a computer mouse or a desk telephone which will render him handicapped atleast temporarily. Then paste a large sticker or poster of a scene from Dilbert on the back of your chair so that no can ever take it again easily.
Posted by: Out of the box, 44, Male | April 24th, 2008 at 1:11 pm | Report this comment
Maybe it was the chair fairy….?

I think I saw him talking and laughing with crymeariver , they thought it was funny to see you walking like the hunchback of Notre Dame.

Move on kiddo , you working in Finance - soon someone will take your soul too!
Posted by: Iceman | April 24th, 2008 at 2:29 pm | Report this comment
There’s a positive side to not having a chair at your desk. You can lose weight if you stand instead of sitting. So, do as much of your work as possible standing up and even move around, especially in front of or behind the chair fairy, maybe looking over his shoulder, or making some irritating noises, to annoy him?
The possibilities are endless…
Posted by: J.J. | April 24th, 2008 at 2:52 pm | Report this comment
Your question involves various parameters in relation to which you venture but little information.

For instance, my advice to you would most certainly differ depending on the length of time you would need to be seated on the chairs you mention. Your profile indicates you are a researcher, so I will assume chairs are an essential part of your working environment, instrumental in ensuring a positive outcome to your endeavours.

Now armed with the intuition that chairs are central to your existence, we must consider your age: 23. Some would argue you are too young to be making waves. Others that you are still too young to be resigned to the unfairness involved in being alive.

Judging by the manner in which you framed your question, cautious in desiring to apportion blame to the act, and unwilling to be hasty in making false accusations, I would advise you to exploit the therapeutic benefits to be derived from this opportunity which fate has placed on your path. In other words, to unleash the inner fiend.

What is life, indeed, without the thrill of continuous discovery? It is time for you to invent a new persona for yourself, if only for the limited purpose of solving the chair crisis.

Advertise your pain. Detail the potential consequences to your wellbeing and the likelihood your work output is being affected. Complain loudly. Try crying perhaps. You may surprise yourself, and you will certainly surprise others.
Posted by: Kismet, 26, female, professional amateur | April 24th, 2008 at 3:06 pm | Report this comment
It sounds like you work in Investment Banking. Take it from an old timer, this sort of thing happens all too frequently and shows flagrant disregard for one’s feelings. I, for one am sympathetic. To protect yourself in future, all your office accoutrements should be discreetly marked with Tipex, invisible ink, coloured pen or similar. Get to work doing this immediately, or who knows? Next time it might be your stapler or scissors!
Posted by: CanaryWharf | April 24th, 2008 at 3:17 pm | Report this comment
WOW! There’s a lot of judgement and other B S posted here - almost nothing in the way of a practical solution.
First a lot of other posters here need to consider the importance of a chair in office work. It ranks very high amongst the tools required for performance. Second, allowing that kind of bad behavior to go by, seemingly un-noticed is to subject oneself to a dismal future in that working relationship, casting you as a ‘victim’ maybe perpetually.
First a calm, rational confrontation is in order. If the chair is customized in any way it should be returned. If the ‘borrower’ seems deceitful and/or stubborn and offers no solution I fear the chair might be ‘lost’ but facilities can likely offer a suitable solution.
Don’t lose your cool but don’t allow this new colleague to dis you either and most importantly don’t be such a coward as to suffer any pain or even discomfort in performing your work.
If it’s only about ego or pride - if the chair is easily replaceable - keep your cool, get a new chair that’s suitable (adequate won’t do!) and after a cooling off period make your concerns known to your new colleague in a manner that will command his respect.

Fred, 68, male, retired commercial interior designer
Posted by: blurider | April 24th, 2008 at 3:51 pm | Report this comment
Have we been had with this one ?

Is this up there with my ‘a lesbian no more ‘ letter to Sun ?
Posted by: Ian, 47, Male | April 24th, 2008 at 4:12 pm | Report this comment
Somebody got too much time and too little work. Ok including me since I reply to this idiotic post too.
Posted by: jin | April 24th, 2008 at 4:17 pm | Report this comment
Today: a chair, Tomorrow: who knows.

I myself am a victim of such treachery, only last week my stapler was replaced for a clearly inferior model - seemingly under the insulting assumption i would fail to notice this switch.

I agree, simplest thing is to order a new chair, or stapler. However this forgoes a lutherian moral duty to sanctimoniously preach about the slightest transgression. No where is this duty more important than in the workplace.

We cannot let degenerate colleagues think it acceptable to purloin office furniture, and whatever else takes their fancy, from their peers. This kind of attitude will only be encouraged and emboldened by awkward silence in the workplace.

Anyone who thinks this kind of attitude is “no big deal” or a “triviality” is clearly floundering in the quicksand of moral turpitude themselves.

Right-thinking people have to take a firm stance on these issues, or these office crimes will continue to spread like a disease across our great nation.

I suggest you approach the colleague in question, and give him a firm and public talking to, so that other people who see a perverted glamour in this kind of office cat-burglary might be dissauded.
Posted by: Robert | April 24th, 2008 at 4:31 pm | Report this comment
I understand your frustration. My business colleague took my stapler and then accidentally tossed it into the bin.

Life is SO not fair.
Posted by: Joe | April 24th, 2008 at 4:37 pm | Report this comment
So many people are so keen to tell you how petty-minded you are. This is because it makes them feel better about themselves.
Posted by: Martin | April 24th, 2008 at 5:02 pm | Report this comment
At first sight, it looks very light as a subjet to talk about. However, one can experience some nasty actions in the office that are just unbelievable.
Last week, I came back to the office after few days away to find a very nice present given to me by my sister broken. When I asked in the office nobody wanted to take the responsibility of that. I assumed it was a deliberate act by one of my colleague.
To be honest, it really hurt…Offices can sometimes be a miserable place.
Posted by: Insa, 29, Male, Consultant | April 24th, 2008 at 5:27 pm | Report this comment
Next time the suspected thief leaves his desk, take his pen. The next time, his notepad. After that, his mouse mat. Keep going until HE confronts the thief. Then you can calmly respond that as he took your chair and did not return it you merely assumed that your office was a communal environment and nobody ‘owns’ any of their possessions.
Posted by: Clare | April 24th, 2008 at 5:33 pm | Report this comment
You really are putting the 2 and the 3 in 23!
Posted by: Susan, 30, Head of Compliance | April 24th, 2008 at 6:10 pm | Report this comment
Oh boy . . . . . . I take it you have never experienced military service or work where you are rewarded for accomplishing a task no matter what the circumstances around you are. Besides the matter being from a practical joke realm, overcoming a “problem” like this is one of a million steps you will have to take in your career. But you can’t get to serious ones without overcoming childish ones. So enjoy the fact that this is a small silly problem, and that Lucy has a column where you can get some advise. Surely better than being smacked on the head by a rough mentor . . . . . . Don’t you agree???
Posted by: Techie, 35, male, manager | April 24th, 2008 at 6:40 pm | Report this comment
I have been in the same boat as you. The chair is an essential tool at the work place and an uncomfortable one decreases productivity. Call your facilites and see how soon they can provide you with a comfortable chair.

If the number of days is within your comfort zone, just casually let the other guy know how much you disapprove your chair being swapped. Even if he did not swap, he will know he is not to take your things.

If you feel it will be a while before your chair will be replaced, you could politely ask the new co-worker if he swapped chairs in your absence. If he accepts he did, then you can tell him that chair was customised for you and you would like it back. If he returns your chair you have a great guy to work with. If he does not, thank him for listening to you and politely but firmly let him know that you do not appreciate him swapping things in your absence.

If he denies that he did swap, you can say the cleaner must have swapped it by mistake and you can request the customised chair be returned to you. If he does not return you chair shrug it off, atleast you have made your point, and make sure to politely let the cleaner know that he is not to swap chairs.

Kamakshi, 33, Female, Software Engineer
Posted by: Kamakshi Mitchell | April 24th, 2008 at 7:22 pm | Report this comment
Tell your colleague that you have crabs. And wait for your chair to magically reappear.
Posted by: tee s | April 24th, 2008 at 7:33 pm | Report this comment
First, I wouldn’t assume someone “took” the chair on purpose with ill intent toward you. Simply ask if anyone knows who has your chair, and then have a discussion with the person who has it. It could be they do have serious health issues and need a more comfortable chair. If so, let them have it and order a new chair. If not, ask for it back and explain how they can order a new chair. Healthy communication always builds rapport and respect.
Posted by: Julie, 49, F, Admin Asst. to Publisher | April 24th, 2008 at 8:21 pm | Report this comment
Let me get this straight. You think your chair was moved by a co-worker, but you can’t tell for sure because they all look the same. You just happened to notice a slight difference in the ergonomics of the chair and you suspected a mass conspiracy?

You’re a freak. If you want a different chair, get their early and roll one up to your desk. What do you guys have assigned chairs or something!? Your post is insanely pathetic on so many levels.

You make me happy to be me.

Get bent.
Posted by: Goldman Gary | April 24th, 2008 at 9:55 pm | Report this comment
Potential solutions are:
1. ask the cleaner if by chance she swapped chairs recently and if yes, ask her to get back the original one
2. if she hasn’t swapped, then you can either:
a. ask her to swap it with the one equal to the one of your colleague
b. ask the facility manager to get the original chair, claiming back problems
3. If the above don’t work, check who else has that chair, someone far from your desk, and swap it. Then put your name on the back and-or some other signs.
4. Definetely do not swap your chair with the chair of your colleague in your neighbourhood

Holly,31,female,sales in finance
Posted by: Holly | April 24th, 2008 at 11:05 pm | Report this comment
What a pathetic figure you cut. 23 years old and you can’t handle the fact that your chair’s gone missing. Thank God it wasn’t your blankie…..

Colin, 60, male, project manager
Posted by: Colin | April 25th, 2008 at 12:39 am | Report this comment
This post has performed well in attracting so many responses thus far. I have been worried about some of the other blogs which seem to get very little attention at all.

It must be that a chair is that ultimate psychological home for all of us in addition to being the foundation of any organisation. After all you cannot have ‘bums on seats’ without the seats.

Having been a victim of chairtheft myself I have found that ‘marking my territory’ has been the best antidote. A molecular accumulation of flatulence on the chair fabric has warned off even the most kleptomanaical while consciously offending no-one. It must be due to the nasal receptors being wired into our older animal brains.

This has even resulted in my being able to acquire my own chair for a song from a number of firms I have left in the past.
Posted by: Cryptoskunk | April 25th, 2008 at 2:32 am | Report this comment
Totally agree with your sentiment and this is a disgrace. Do what I did.

Dont take the chair back from the person you suspect as having taken your chair because you have no proof. A confict may ensue.

Instead come in late at night or very early and swop your uncomfortable chair with another chair but from an entirely different location in the office or preferably another floor. That way you will never be caught, will never upset anyone, will have a comfortable chair once more. Further you can have a quiet chuckle about the potential unrest by the most recently displaced chairs owner!

Good luck!
Posted by: Alistair | April 25th, 2008 at 8:15 am | Report this comment
Research associate, male, 23
I stumbled upon your plight quite by accident and I feel your pain. My advice would be to simply request a new better chair, mark your territory and forget the whole thing. If it happens again then would be the time to raise the issue with your supervisor. Make friends with the new kid, maybe it’ll be something you end up laughing over one day as BFF. Take heart and chin up.

You ebil commenters, thank you for making me laugh so much with your flames. I’m sure when he is as old as you are he will join your soulless ranks.
Posted by: Summer, 29, altruism has left the office building | April 25th, 2008 at 8:26 am | Report this comment
Do unto others I say - in this day of cubicle hoteling, storing our personal effects in high school style lockers, we have very little sense of personal self left in the office.

I say go into the office early on morning and before the new guy has popped in with his triple latte from Starbucks you can liberate your chair to your deserving arse. You, your arse and your chair will all be happy and all will be right with the world once again.

You can ensure your chair’s safety with a mark so that it can be distinguished from all the others. I suggest a “Hello Kitty” sticker.
Posted by: RisingSun | April 25th, 2008 at 8:55 am | Report this comment
Here’s the least helpful piece of “advice” you will receive: go self employed, work from home and you can have your own chair which no one can nick. Richard, male, 48, Self employed
Posted by: Richard | April 25th, 2008 at 9:18 am | Report this comment
Wait until the office is at its busiest, then approach him slowly from behind and hit him very hard.

That should liven things up a bit.
Posted by: Female, Financial PR | April 25th, 2008 at 10:18 am | Report this comment
What do you tell your mates(if you have any that is) about what worries you at work!!! Male,32.
Posted by: Sam | April 25th, 2008 at 10:25 am | Report this comment
I really feel that you should stand up and fight over this issue. Perhaps take it to your Union representative? That is what you pay your fees for. If this does not result in a new chair for you - I mean, this co-worker has been SITTING on your chair and may have carried germs on to it - then you may wish to consider an arbitration panel. There is lots of useful information on such important issues at www.youarealoser.com
Posted by: James | April 25th, 2008 at 11:03 am | Report this comment
Sounds like just another bad chair day.
Posted by: Darren Desk-Jockey, 34, Male, Director | April 25th, 2008 at 11:48 am | Report this comment
I would speak to the new associate and if the chair was taken, just politely to ask for it back. Be mature. If new guy says he didn’t take it, take him at his word even if you still believe he’s lying.

This seems like a small and petty issue, but don’t ignore it. You already think less of the guy even though you have no idea whether he really took the chair. And if he did take the chair, what next? Will he take your pens, your fire engine red Swingline?

Especially if new guy is right out of school, he may not know or understand office etiquette. Ignore the problem and it may just get worse.
Posted by: CrappyDeli | April 25th, 2008 at 12:59 pm | Report this comment
Of course it’s a petty problem but an interesting one nevertheless.

The office chair is to the office worker what the trusty stead was to the cowboy in the American West. For this reason, office furniture plays a pivotal role in Joshua Ferris’s office-bound novel ‘Then We Came to the End’. Here’s how the New York Times describes the chair’s link to the beleaguered employee’s soul:

‘Information professionals crave information, and when it is denied them — who is going next, how many and why — they spin superstitious theories and adopt curious totems. The employees discover that the office coordinator keeps tabs on which furniture belongs in which offices, and they fear that their chairs — scavenged from laid-off peers with better furniture, in a round-robin so complex no one remembers whose Aeron was originally whose — will get them fired. The chair becomes a symbol for all that is hated and lusted-after about work. It is a prison and a status symbol, a reminder that “their” offices are not really their own, a means of exercising minor tyranny, a reward, a throne, a life preserver.’

Our 23-year-old may actually be wiser than his years…
Posted by: Ron, 49, journalist | April 25th, 2008 at 1:31 pm | Report this comment
Alert the authorities! Maybe your co-workers are having some fun watching you go ballistic over something so unimportant. Is this your typical reaction to trivial things? Try doing your work and getting along.
Posted by: Beau | April 25th, 2008 at 2:30 pm | Report this comment
I may have tossed the stapler in the bin but he’s stealing my pens all the time!
Posted by: Anne | April 25th, 2008 at 4:23 pm | Report this comment
well, they say there is always first time for everything.

lesson learned here, secretly mark your chair, if you so love it.

i did it to mine, just in case my beloved chair got stolen or swapped.

yeah, small matter about chair. but, serious enough for developing backache because of very uncomfortable sitting.
Posted by: kenliang | April 25th, 2008 at 6:17 pm | Report this comment
This is why I would never make a diplomat.

I would have simply shouted ‘mate you stole my chair!’ then made a joke about it, then ordered a new one for myself from facilities or whoever.

Having a bit of a laugh about it would break the ice with the FNG and give you an opener every time you meet at the water cooler.

Even better than that you get a new chair out of it!

evry ones a winner
Posted by: Stuart - FD | April 25th, 2008 at 7:23 pm | Report this comment
god what is this guy on get a life and fight your battles and ask the guy better still does your company do how to be a man course or better still get a adult to help you,YOUR JUST A LITTLE MUMMIES BOY
Posted by: company boss | April 25th, 2008 at 7:26 pm | Report this comment
Advice-
Get a job not requiring a chair - McDonald’s is always hiring.
Posted by: John | April 25th, 2008 at 9:52 pm | Report this comment
Many posters here may laugh at your plight and tell you to get a life - but these are the same people who winge about the size of their office, the specification of their company car and the fact that their blackberry does not have the same bells and whistles as their colleagues !

Take back your chair and if challenged claim it’s needed for a dodgy back and tell them it was allocated to you in the first place. Also sellotape your name on the back of it to ram home the message. Finally give your colleague the details of where said comfy chair can be obtained from and hopefully they will order one and leave you alone in peace.
Posted by: Andrew, 46, executive bottle washer | April 26th, 2008 at 12:24 pm | Report this comment
There are other possibilities to consider. The most likely is that someone is deliberately rattling your cage, either to see how you react or for the amusement it provides. Your best alternative is casually to seek the aid of the janitorial or even secretarial staff. They are the people who usually know everything that is going on. The key word here is ?casually.? Preferably phrase your inquiry with a sense of humor. Certainly do not act upset or even mildly concerned. With luck your chair will return as mysteriously as it disappeared.

This tack will work best if you have taken steps to become acquainted with the staff. Greet them by name, and for those whom you see frequently take the trouble to learn the name of their spouse or children. In short, do what it takes to show that you respect them as people and appreciate their contributions to making the organization run smoothly. It will pay off handsomely.

Retired university administrator, male, 79
Posted by: Jack N | April 26th, 2008 at 5:06 pm | Report this comment
Order a new one from Office supplies and when it arrives, tell everyone how comfortable it is and SO much better than the old which disappeared , saying whoever took it did you a favour. Try to order the new one in an identifiable style/colour to prevent a repetion. Oh and by the way, grow up and get a life!
C Chapman female 62 Thamkfully retired from all this crap
Posted by: carole chapman | April 26th, 2008 at 9:08 pm | Report this comment
Which chair you have is important in an office. It is part of your personal space.

If you don’t like this, or anything else, in your office, ask your boss for a replacement. If he doesn’t oblige, just buy your own. Nothing in an office is that expensive these days, and as you spend much of your waking like at work, so you may as well have it as you like it.

You may even discover how many things other people are dissatisfied with, and start a trend.
Posted by: Stephen, male, 42, CEO | April 26th, 2008 at 10:46 pm | Report this comment
Mate, I know what you are going through and I have been there. It may be pitty, but what the hell, your chair is your chair. The chair was not moved by the cleaner, it was somebody else. If you try to claim a new chair, it will look chidlish and as if you demanding special treatment. It happened to me when I was doing my vacation work in a law firm.But I was comfortable on that chair and I wanted it back. Just get ealier at work and swop the chair for a better one.It might not be the original one but just get what looks good to you. Problem Solved.
Posted by: Bafana | April 27th, 2008 at 6:05 pm | Report this comment
I was in the office furniture business for many years. Chairs = territory and status. If your chair is switched for a lesser model it is a mild form of aggression, a personal slight. (All these flamers seem quite aggressive themselves, don’t they? It’s not as tiny a matter as they let on.)
Plus, a decent company would supply chairs with a number of controls that, once personalized, make all the difference in day-to-day comfort and ability to concentrate. Starting over on an uncomfortable, unadapted chair, feeling that it is unfair, won’t help you focus on work.
The poster called Clare has a great solution, but only if you’re convinced of the culprit’s identity.
Asking for another (better) chair from facilities management is the best solution, no matter how long the wait. But in a small office, it would brand you as a troublemaker. Bringing in your own chair would also brand you as a weirdo, not “one of the gang”. Standing up and asking casually if someone switched chairs is brave, but probably no-one will own up to it and you’ll be branded as a weirdo.
So the only recourse in this situation would be guerilla revenge, the get-there-early-and-switch-then-label-it technique.
Don’t get caught! Good luck!

Pamela, female, ex-Knollie
Posted by: pamela wesson | April 27th, 2008 at 8:00 pm | Report this comment
Talk to your office manager about it, if necessary inventing a lower back problem that is exacerbated by the new chair. As a research associate, you will know by now that the most important person to befriend is the office manager…
Posted by: former research associate | April 28th, 2008 at 1:44 pm | Report this comment
It doesn’t seem fair to impose your uncomfortable chair on a fellow colleague. Get yourself a replacement - legally. If possible it should be a bit special and distinctive, the envy of your fellow analysts and not nickable by virtue of its uniqueness.

By the way, welcome to office life and familiar patterns of behaviour which have remained unchanged for over 100 years. Isn’t it comforting to see human nature in action?

Chris, 55, VP, male
Posted by: Chris | April 28th, 2008 at 2:03 pm | Report this comment
If you complain,you will be viewed as a small minded obsessive.So go for the revenge option!
Stay late one evening.Then,after the office is empty pour some honey on the stolen chair.Make sure you work the honey into the seat so that it is not visible.The thief will then have sticky trousers every time he uses that chair.Also ensure you put an inventory sticker or some identifier in a discreet place on the chair you are using,in case he tries to switch it back,and make sure you check it’s still there before you sit!
Revenge is sweet!
Posted by: C.Elder ;36; VP Marketing. | April 29th, 2008 at 10:49 am | Report this comment
This is really baby stuff and you still smell of milk. Get a rucksack and some hiking boots, set fire to your cubicle and go out and see the world.

James
52
Male
Press spokesman
Posted by: James | April 29th, 2008 at 1:27 pm | Report this comment
Forget about the chair and concentrate on how to get to the corner office (which, among other benefits, will have a more comfortable chair). Spending too much time glued to your inherited chair in your cubicle will not get you there.
Posted by: Strategist, female, 39 | May 1st, 2008 at 9:01 am | Report this comment
Inform HR that your current chair is causing you back pain. Their paranoid fear of being sued will result in a comfortable new chair being delivered quite promptly. Wax lyrical to your new colleague about how much more comfortable the new one is. Confrontation avoided but score settled.
Posted by: Manager, male, 34 | May 1st, 2008 at 9:10 am | Report this comment
If you are unable to stand up in the middle of your office and ask “Who the hell took my freaking chair?” with such force that someone guiltily surrenders it, I doubt you have the inspiration and/or intestinal fortitude necessary to progress in the business world.
Posted by: Analyst, male, 34 | May 1st, 2008 at 9:12 am | Report this comment
I think your problem is a serious issue and not a trivial matter. what i find trivial is writing to FT about it. If people think its so trivial how come they are ready to post comments about it. Look is simple. go and meet the bloke, welcome him to the office, explain your situation and ask for your chair. Use the opportunity to get to know him.
Posted by: Jay,najites@hotmail.com,male,27,Admin | May 6th, 2008 at 11:11 pm | Report this comment
Ask one of your secretaries where your chair’s gone because you’re missing it and nothing else seems as comfortable. A friendly ally will get it back for you and avoid any red faces.
Posted by: TK, Banker, Male, 35 | May 9th, 2008 at 11:30 am | Report this comment

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