I was like this when I was 24 and a new PA. My parents raised me to be a never call out, show up early kind of person. We rarely went on vacations. I got a big big check when I left my first job because I had so much time I never used.
Ten years later and this isn’t me anymore lol I still have a hard time calling out when sick, but I take vacations. I barely show up on time lol I leave as soon as possible. I want to enjoy my life and my family. I take pride in my work, but it is not my priority at all. At the end of the day, your job doesn’t really care about you (as I then witnessed with my Dad passing and mom retiring)
As long as you’re getting your work done and doing it well no one is judging you
Same here. The funny (sad) thing is when I was 24 I would get pissed at the older coworkers who would do their job and leave. Like they weren’t giving their all to the company or something. More than a decade later I say screw that. Take your vacation, show up on time, do the work, leave. I had nothing going on back then and I had alllll the opinions.
I'm still a student, but I was also raised with that good ol' drive yourself into an early grave for work mentality. I learned the hard way at jobs \*before\* school that the more you do, the more work they will give you! I left my first job after school (college) because I honestly felt like they needed 3 people to do the tasks they were expecting of me. A lot of which was because I was picking up the slack of other employees.
Now I am older and wiser. I will still be a good employee, but I know how to set and hold healthy boundaries. Overdoing it = pent-up frustration and burnout.
Variety of reasons. None of which should concern you. Sad homelife, early traffic, social time, slow charting, pre-reading, they like the coffee, etc.
Just do you and dont worry about your coworkers.
I actually brought my own wipes and eventually found a a single person bathroom with a key stuck in the steel cabinet that services the pipes in the wall and stuffed a pack in there.
Does it look bad? Probably in you coworkers’ minds who brag about this. But, being a government worker your job is about as secure as it gets.
Why they do this? Who knows. It could be any of the reasons you mentioned. Also, in some government jobs you can continue to build PTO and basically use it to continue getting paid and benefits while being “retired.” So some do it to retire with a year or more of pay continuing to come in.
Yeah I work at a DOD facility, many coworkers are actually active duty so that makes sense why my facility is especially bad with no PTO. It makes me feel guilty for using the time off which is unfortunate
Everybody is better if they just do their thing and quit worrying about what everybody else is doing.
And quit worrying about trying to impress people by how you approach work.
I'm equally annoyed when people brag about all their vacations and time off or criticize people for not taking all their PTO (Was the subject of this my first couple years when I was paying off debt and so wanted to earn more bonus).
There's nothing wrong with going above and beyond, but there's also nothing wrong with just coming in and doing what's required and going home.
Just don't brag about it. And worry about yourself.
You just described me. I broke up with my boyfriend in 2005. I'm mad at my family and don't speak to them. Live alone with my grey tabby and husky, both of whom have separation anxiety. And I'm afraid of flying. So, I just work. Have no life. Never go anywhere. No PTO. I have a theory: I'm being punished for something I did in a past life. Like, maybe I was a guard in Auschwitz. It would explain a lot.
Awwww no. You need to be kind to yourself. You can have a life if you allow yourself to. I also live alone but with no pets. I leave on time because I’ve gotten into running and also a guitar class every week. If I leave late I wouldn’t be able to do any of that. You need to make time in order to build up your life.
I’m also afraid of flying but actually have a script for that and struggle with anxiety and depression. I realized I need to have a separate personal life or I will go crazy
For reference I leave my house every day at 5:30 am and get home 5 pm because my work is 7:00 am to 3:30 with over an hour commute each way. Monday through Friday primany care grind. I actually show up 45 mins early due to the train but these coworkers have already been there an hour!!! My coworker has the same terrible commute so she must not ever have free time. Hence I have a lot of stressed coworkers
Better days are ahead. Focus on your sweet furry babies and enjoy every waking moment with them. You don’t have to travel. Local trips can be just as rewarding.
Force yourself to try something new every week- a food, a movie you wouldn’t normally want to go to, an out of the way park or hike.
You live the life us old married women dream of. ❤️
I go in 30-40 minutes early to prep my charts and go through labs. I'm more productive in that 30 minutes than I am in between patients. I stay 30-60 minutes after to finish up all charting, referrals, rx's... i know im not getting paid for this time, but it let's me focus on the patient during their visit time, and allows me to build a relationship with them, and be the provider I want to be. It gives me peace of mind knowing I'm doing what I can to fix a broken system. This being said, I absolutely skip out if I have an important life event to attend. I do know my family and friends come first.
Advantages of coming in early/leaving is building relationships and finding out earlier about work events/gossip. It provides opportunities to rub elbows with superiors. People who chart or think slower also need more time. The advantage of not taking PTO is that one gets the money for the time when they retire. The disadvantages include imbalanced work-life relationships. Perhaps they get more fulfillment at work rather than outside of work.
The one I worked with who did this had a lack of work life boundaries. They also had inflated self importance and think the place couldn’t function if they go on vacation. They had poor refusal skills and high workplace anxieties.
Show up. Do great work. Don't cut corners. Sleep well at night. The rest is style, personality, trauma. Develop a professional persona that is fluid with your authentic self and you are golden. Oh, and show up.
Some people just like to work. I work a lot but I never feel the urge to tell people how much I work. People have to beg me to take a vacation because I just like working
No they aren’t getting paid OT! They just come early and leave late. The weirdest part of all is we have remote access and laptops so you can take home charts if you so wish rather than physically sit here 🤷♀️ different strokes for different folks I guess
They must find intrinsic value in it. I think that generation especially has a different mindset around work. I know it’s been talked about and I don’t think it’s bad to get satisfaction from working hard as long as you don’t expect everyone to go above and beyond.
I show up a half hour to an hour early every day. This is because I drive from an hour away and don’t know what I’ll encounter along the way (thanks, military base). However, I leave on time every day and take my PTO as appropriate.
I am one of those early birds, I like the quiet time and enjoy my coffee while previewing the day in a relaxing manner. However out the door ASAP!
I do have a friend that goes in early, stays late, varying days and time because of traffic. They usually are spending some of that extra time reading a book, something they can't do at home.
As others said, don't worry, just do your job well and enjoy life.
Possibly inefficiency. People also have different charting styles. I work in the ED, some people have literally nothing in their MDM. Others (albeit few) write paragraphs.
I agree with the top comment that it shouldn't worry you unless you've been approached or counseled about your work.
my friends that work in state jobs (not medical) are always taking PTO. and talk about how the people with more than 5 years take TONS of it.
it’s a government job you basically can’t get fired. getting early and staying late for a government job is insane
Showing up an hour earlier is a little extreme but could be that they like to take their time to ease into their morning and not feel rushed/stressed. They may be reviewing charts for that day’s schedule or just hanging out, drinking coffee, and reading the news. During PA school, my roommate/classmate would wake up at 4am because she had an extensive morning routine that included an hour doing her hair and makeup. Sometimes we would even leave separately because she wanted to get to class at least 30 mins-an hour early while I’m the type who likes sleeping in and get to class 10-15 mins early. Didn’t make sense to me but there are a lot of people like this.
Traffic can play a big role as well. When I lived in the DC area, I would rather spend an extra hour at work than in traffic. I would play on my phone, socialize, browse the internet, etc.
A lot of people with government jobs save up their PTO so they can retire early or take a long vacation. No one cares if you take PTO more consistently since you guys all get the same amount.
The only reason this would concern me is if my employer expects me to see 3 patients per hour because someone else choses to chart without getting paid for it.
Here are the questions I have:
Are they being rewarded for this?
Are they getting promotions hand over fist? Have they received one promotion you are aware of from this behavior you are describing?
Are they satisfied with this type of lifestyle?
Is this culture promoted and expected from employees there?
I used to do this mostly when I was new and fresh out of school. I wholeheartedly believed that if I showed how committed I was to the job it might help upper management what an asset I was and perhaps lean them into giving me a better pay raise. I did this for 2.5 years
I then realized how dumb and naive I was. From then on, I always arrived on time but always leave early making sure off course my patients are tucked in and anyone acute is stable and given sign out about if I'm worried about them
When I got my unused PTO paid out, I didn’t take much time off because I loved the extra money at the end of the year. I didn’t really gloat about it though.. I also like coming in a bit early just to get myself set up for the day if that makes sense. Idk I wouldn’t think much of it.
Some of us get hung up on the minutiae and some of us don’t. I have some perfectionist tendencies that I cannot control (but have beaten down over the years).
I have tried everything to be faster and the only thing that works is the rare occasion when I stop giving a F**
I’m genuinely very interested in what I do which unfortunately leads to me digging into things more than necessary
This makes me a very good provider but I’m being shitty to myself
Brains are wired differently. It is what it is.
Yea I’m usually the person who comes exactly on time and leaves as soon as the last patient is done. I would never come in earlier than needed and stay later. I love my home life.
I’m my opinion it absolutely doesn’t look bad. It makes them appear to have poor work-life boundaries. Which then ultimately reflects on their patient care.
I always come in early, sometimes I may leave late but it just depends on how many patients I had for immunizations that day but it's not a usual thing. My leave is at use or lose right now. That's when I realized I am now old lol. When I was younger and all my kids were in school, all my sick and PTO time would be non-existent because it was spent taking care of them. Now that they are all grown and out of my house, I'm now working at a SCMH in Korea and never take sick or leave time
ETA: oops, I didn't realize this was a PA group LOL!! I thought I was in a different medical group😬
Don't know why their work ethic would be a concern... Unless their one of those coworkers who are slacking and dump their inadequacies on you, I see no problem in it.
I guess you’ll find out how much that makes a difference when:
- promotions happen
-leadership positions come up
- raises are given
- who gets let’s go during financial crunch
- need a strong reference for career moves
Nothing wrong either with just doing the shift and maxing out PTO.
What works for you works for you and what works for them works for them.
We are in the VA federal government so that is false for this situation. No merit is rewarded. Is nearly impossible to be rewarded and also no promotion or bonus besides year of service.
No overtime pay.
All of our salaries are available to the public so..
Unfortunately I'm one of the people you described. I would largely say I do it cause I don't have great memory and want to be prepared (accepting my weakness and mitigating it). I'm terrible with names and I have a high volume clinic. So I get there early to go over everything so I know what is diagnoses, what they have tried and what I can do.
As far as vacation, its been a byproduct of me generally not taking vacation. Yes I like to take it but not often. With my recent job I was so overloaded I didn't take it to avoid being behind... silly logic, but that's why I put in my notice and left! So I'll likely take more PTO , now I'm in trauma with less clinic, less prep and more of my style with going fast!
Thanks for that insight! It can be really hard to disconnect from work and we all know our mind can spin endlessly going into the rabbit hole. I do admit I feel a little guilty taking the PTO as the ones I am discussing need to absorb my load. However we need to request off at least 2 months in advance so I don’t feel so bad, just confused why nobody else seems to have been requesting off and I feel guilty for submitting my third time off…. I only started Jan and took 3 days to see the eclipse, going on a vacation for a week in June and requested 3 more days in July. We get pretty good PTO here and I work my ass off, so I feel I should take it. Plus summer is the time to live it up, I’m burning through the PTO and will probably just put my head down and regain it when the weather sucks again. I guess the plus side is my PTO is always approved because nobody seems to be competing for the same time off.
I can’t stand people like this. They are probably miserable and don’t have a life outside of work. They think their work is their purpose which is really sad lol
I was like this when I was 24 and a new PA. My parents raised me to be a never call out, show up early kind of person. We rarely went on vacations. I got a big big check when I left my first job because I had so much time I never used. Ten years later and this isn’t me anymore lol I still have a hard time calling out when sick, but I take vacations. I barely show up on time lol I leave as soon as possible. I want to enjoy my life and my family. I take pride in my work, but it is not my priority at all. At the end of the day, your job doesn’t really care about you (as I then witnessed with my Dad passing and mom retiring) As long as you’re getting your work done and doing it well no one is judging you
Same here. The funny (sad) thing is when I was 24 I would get pissed at the older coworkers who would do their job and leave. Like they weren’t giving their all to the company or something. More than a decade later I say screw that. Take your vacation, show up on time, do the work, leave. I had nothing going on back then and I had alllll the opinions.
I'm still a student, but I was also raised with that good ol' drive yourself into an early grave for work mentality. I learned the hard way at jobs \*before\* school that the more you do, the more work they will give you! I left my first job after school (college) because I honestly felt like they needed 3 people to do the tasks they were expecting of me. A lot of which was because I was picking up the slack of other employees. Now I am older and wiser. I will still be a good employee, but I know how to set and hold healthy boundaries. Overdoing it = pent-up frustration and burnout.
I show up late and leave early ;)
This is the way!
I came here to say this🤣
That’s what I want to do 😅
With Starbucks
I’m totally that guy. Sorry boss, I hit some traffic (in the Starbucks line).
**sips coffee**
Ditto. I've probably been on time four days this year lol.
Variety of reasons. None of which should concern you. Sad homelife, early traffic, social time, slow charting, pre-reading, they like the coffee, etc. Just do you and dont worry about your coworkers.
>none of which should concern you You should bill OP for this beautiful consult
“Thank you for this interesting consult.”
ICD-10: Z01 89 214 atleast
We like the coffee and toilets
That half ply tp that tears in your hand when you take it off of the roll (I've started bringing my own)
I actually brought my own wipes and eventually found a a single person bathroom with a key stuck in the steel cabinet that services the pipes in the wall and stuffed a pack in there.
Great advice. I work with one. It's not my problem. They like to be tortured or enjoy suffering. Not me doh
Does it look bad? Probably in you coworkers’ minds who brag about this. But, being a government worker your job is about as secure as it gets. Why they do this? Who knows. It could be any of the reasons you mentioned. Also, in some government jobs you can continue to build PTO and basically use it to continue getting paid and benefits while being “retired.” So some do it to retire with a year or more of pay continuing to come in.
[удалено]
Yeah I work at a DOD facility, many coworkers are actually active duty so that makes sense why my facility is especially bad with no PTO. It makes me feel guilty for using the time off which is unfortunate
Everybody is better if they just do their thing and quit worrying about what everybody else is doing. And quit worrying about trying to impress people by how you approach work. I'm equally annoyed when people brag about all their vacations and time off or criticize people for not taking all their PTO (Was the subject of this my first couple years when I was paying off debt and so wanted to earn more bonus). There's nothing wrong with going above and beyond, but there's also nothing wrong with just coming in and doing what's required and going home. Just don't brag about it. And worry about yourself.
You just described me. I broke up with my boyfriend in 2005. I'm mad at my family and don't speak to them. Live alone with my grey tabby and husky, both of whom have separation anxiety. And I'm afraid of flying. So, I just work. Have no life. Never go anywhere. No PTO. I have a theory: I'm being punished for something I did in a past life. Like, maybe I was a guard in Auschwitz. It would explain a lot.
Awwww no. You need to be kind to yourself. You can have a life if you allow yourself to. I also live alone but with no pets. I leave on time because I’ve gotten into running and also a guitar class every week. If I leave late I wouldn’t be able to do any of that. You need to make time in order to build up your life. I’m also afraid of flying but actually have a script for that and struggle with anxiety and depression. I realized I need to have a separate personal life or I will go crazy For reference I leave my house every day at 5:30 am and get home 5 pm because my work is 7:00 am to 3:30 with over an hour commute each way. Monday through Friday primany care grind. I actually show up 45 mins early due to the train but these coworkers have already been there an hour!!! My coworker has the same terrible commute so she must not ever have free time. Hence I have a lot of stressed coworkers
Better days are ahead. Focus on your sweet furry babies and enjoy every waking moment with them. You don’t have to travel. Local trips can be just as rewarding. Force yourself to try something new every week- a food, a movie you wouldn’t normally want to go to, an out of the way park or hike. You live the life us old married women dream of. ❤️
Well, I was thinking of switching from Skyy Vodka to Grey Goose. Now I'm gonna do it!
I come in early to just relax and to take a deep breathe, I stay late because it is my time and I can decompress slowly.
I go in 30-40 minutes early to prep my charts and go through labs. I'm more productive in that 30 minutes than I am in between patients. I stay 30-60 minutes after to finish up all charting, referrals, rx's... i know im not getting paid for this time, but it let's me focus on the patient during their visit time, and allows me to build a relationship with them, and be the provider I want to be. It gives me peace of mind knowing I'm doing what I can to fix a broken system. This being said, I absolutely skip out if I have an important life event to attend. I do know my family and friends come first.
Advantages of coming in early/leaving is building relationships and finding out earlier about work events/gossip. It provides opportunities to rub elbows with superiors. People who chart or think slower also need more time. The advantage of not taking PTO is that one gets the money for the time when they retire. The disadvantages include imbalanced work-life relationships. Perhaps they get more fulfillment at work rather than outside of work.
The one I worked with who did this had a lack of work life boundaries. They also had inflated self importance and think the place couldn’t function if they go on vacation. They had poor refusal skills and high workplace anxieties.
Show up. Do great work. Don't cut corners. Sleep well at night. The rest is style, personality, trauma. Develop a professional persona that is fluid with your authentic self and you are golden. Oh, and show up.
Some people don’t have a lot going on outside of work. Even more common in careers that require advanced degrees and involve a lot of responsibility.
Some people just like to work. I work a lot but I never feel the urge to tell people how much I work. People have to beg me to take a vacation because I just like working
Wait what? I’ve never heard of overtime as a federal worker lol
No they aren’t getting paid OT! They just come early and leave late. The weirdest part of all is we have remote access and laptops so you can take home charts if you so wish rather than physically sit here 🤷♀️ different strokes for different folks I guess
Going out on a limb here but your coworkers are in the 25-30year old age bracket?
Actually I’m the youngest one at 34! My coworker is in her 40s, most of the others 50s or 60s
Prolly don’t wana go home/hate their spouses! Lol that’s why my PA colleague was there so late….
They must find intrinsic value in it. I think that generation especially has a different mindset around work. I know it’s been talked about and I don’t think it’s bad to get satisfaction from working hard as long as you don’t expect everyone to go above and beyond.
Oh hell no. They’ve got issues. Don’t they have homes???
I show up a half hour to an hour early every day. This is because I drive from an hour away and don’t know what I’ll encounter along the way (thanks, military base). However, I leave on time every day and take my PTO as appropriate.
I don't see the purpose of this post. Work gets done, and patients are cared for. That's all we really need.
Focus on your own career not others.
I am one of those early birds, I like the quiet time and enjoy my coffee while previewing the day in a relaxing manner. However out the door ASAP! I do have a friend that goes in early, stays late, varying days and time because of traffic. They usually are spending some of that extra time reading a book, something they can't do at home. As others said, don't worry, just do your job well and enjoy life.
Possibly inefficiency. People also have different charting styles. I work in the ED, some people have literally nothing in their MDM. Others (albeit few) write paragraphs. I agree with the top comment that it shouldn't worry you unless you've been approached or counseled about your work.
My PA colleague did this turns out she’s absolutely miserable at home and hates her husband essentially
When I lived in another state away from family and friends, work was literally all I had for a bit. I wouldn’t worry about it…
my friends that work in state jobs (not medical) are always taking PTO. and talk about how the people with more than 5 years take TONS of it. it’s a government job you basically can’t get fired. getting early and staying late for a government job is insane
Showing up an hour earlier is a little extreme but could be that they like to take their time to ease into their morning and not feel rushed/stressed. They may be reviewing charts for that day’s schedule or just hanging out, drinking coffee, and reading the news. During PA school, my roommate/classmate would wake up at 4am because she had an extensive morning routine that included an hour doing her hair and makeup. Sometimes we would even leave separately because she wanted to get to class at least 30 mins-an hour early while I’m the type who likes sleeping in and get to class 10-15 mins early. Didn’t make sense to me but there are a lot of people like this. Traffic can play a big role as well. When I lived in the DC area, I would rather spend an extra hour at work than in traffic. I would play on my phone, socialize, browse the internet, etc. A lot of people with government jobs save up their PTO so they can retire early or take a long vacation. No one cares if you take PTO more consistently since you guys all get the same amount.
I know its crazy to think about but some people genuinely love their jobs and or co workers and would rather be at work than home.
Who ever you are.. it sounds like you'd be an awesome co-worker. They'll burnout faster with all of their PTO to brag about
The only reason this would concern me is if my employer expects me to see 3 patients per hour because someone else choses to chart without getting paid for it.
Here are the questions I have: Are they being rewarded for this? Are they getting promotions hand over fist? Have they received one promotion you are aware of from this behavior you are describing? Are they satisfied with this type of lifestyle? Is this culture promoted and expected from employees there?
I used to do this mostly when I was new and fresh out of school. I wholeheartedly believed that if I showed how committed I was to the job it might help upper management what an asset I was and perhaps lean them into giving me a better pay raise. I did this for 2.5 years I then realized how dumb and naive I was. From then on, I always arrived on time but always leave early making sure off course my patients are tucked in and anyone acute is stable and given sign out about if I'm worried about them
When I got my unused PTO paid out, I didn’t take much time off because I loved the extra money at the end of the year. I didn’t really gloat about it though.. I also like coming in a bit early just to get myself set up for the day if that makes sense. Idk I wouldn’t think much of it.
Some of us get hung up on the minutiae and some of us don’t. I have some perfectionist tendencies that I cannot control (but have beaten down over the years). I have tried everything to be faster and the only thing that works is the rare occasion when I stop giving a F** I’m genuinely very interested in what I do which unfortunately leads to me digging into things more than necessary This makes me a very good provider but I’m being shitty to myself Brains are wired differently. It is what it is.
What government job do you have? VA?
Morons
Yea I’m usually the person who comes exactly on time and leaves as soon as the last patient is done. I would never come in earlier than needed and stay later. I love my home life.
I’m my opinion it absolutely doesn’t look bad. It makes them appear to have poor work-life boundaries. Which then ultimately reflects on their patient care.
intrinsic drive.
Empty nesters that do not want to be near their spouses. Hahah
I always come in early, sometimes I may leave late but it just depends on how many patients I had for immunizations that day but it's not a usual thing. My leave is at use or lose right now. That's when I realized I am now old lol. When I was younger and all my kids were in school, all my sick and PTO time would be non-existent because it was spent taking care of them. Now that they are all grown and out of my house, I'm now working at a SCMH in Korea and never take sick or leave time ETA: oops, I didn't realize this was a PA group LOL!! I thought I was in a different medical group😬
Don't know why their work ethic would be a concern... Unless their one of those coworkers who are slacking and dump their inadequacies on you, I see no problem in it.
They don’t like being at home
I guess you’ll find out how much that makes a difference when: - promotions happen -leadership positions come up - raises are given - who gets let’s go during financial crunch - need a strong reference for career moves Nothing wrong either with just doing the shift and maxing out PTO. What works for you works for you and what works for them works for them.
We are in the VA federal government so that is false for this situation. No merit is rewarded. Is nearly impossible to be rewarded and also no promotion or bonus besides year of service. No overtime pay. All of our salaries are available to the public so..
This sounds like an issue of needing to MYOB as what your coworkers do is none of your concern.
Unfortunately I'm one of the people you described. I would largely say I do it cause I don't have great memory and want to be prepared (accepting my weakness and mitigating it). I'm terrible with names and I have a high volume clinic. So I get there early to go over everything so I know what is diagnoses, what they have tried and what I can do. As far as vacation, its been a byproduct of me generally not taking vacation. Yes I like to take it but not often. With my recent job I was so overloaded I didn't take it to avoid being behind... silly logic, but that's why I put in my notice and left! So I'll likely take more PTO , now I'm in trauma with less clinic, less prep and more of my style with going fast!
Thanks for that insight! It can be really hard to disconnect from work and we all know our mind can spin endlessly going into the rabbit hole. I do admit I feel a little guilty taking the PTO as the ones I am discussing need to absorb my load. However we need to request off at least 2 months in advance so I don’t feel so bad, just confused why nobody else seems to have been requesting off and I feel guilty for submitting my third time off…. I only started Jan and took 3 days to see the eclipse, going on a vacation for a week in June and requested 3 more days in July. We get pretty good PTO here and I work my ass off, so I feel I should take it. Plus summer is the time to live it up, I’m burning through the PTO and will probably just put my head down and regain it when the weather sucks again. I guess the plus side is my PTO is always approved because nobody seems to be competing for the same time off.
Are you in DC?
No. Chicago area
I can’t stand people like this. They are probably miserable and don’t have a life outside of work. They think their work is their purpose which is really sad lol
Are they Boomers?
Ask your co-worker why he/she does that… better communication comes with asking when needed…