Sometimes, the togetherness is too much to take. From the moment we get in line at the coffee cart in the morning until we pull our cars out of the parking lot in the evening like a presidential motorcade, we're surrounded. We can't even get a moment alone to take care of our most personal business.
You know the type. They start the chit-chat in the hallway and carry it on through the restroom doors and into the stalls. There has never been nor will there ever be a conversation compelling enough to continue over the whoosh of flushing toilets, but that won't stop them.
If you know the restroom chatterers in your office, you can time your breaks to avoid them. But because Mother Nature can be capricious, consider these bathroom-chatter-blocking tactics for those accidental encounters.
First, put as much distance as you can between you and the talker. Even the chattiest of Cathys will think twice about talking through several stall walls. If that doesn't deter the banter, try an early flush to signal the only business you're open for is your own.
If conversations must commence, they should be contained to the area of sinks and mirrors. They should be light in nature and brief in duration. If we have to be dragged into or overhear entire conversations, at least be sure they're not about work. We have a hard enough time associating our challenging projects with positive things. Hearing or talking about them "in the loo" hardly seems fair.
If all else fails, perhaps you could change the subject to this blog post. A writer appreciates being quoted anywhere.
Franny Fried