How to quiet the chatty coworker

April 30, 2:15 PMRelationship Advice ExaminerJennifer Tjon

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AP Photo/Paul Sakuma

My coworker is constantly telling me the sordid details of her personal life and not only is it annoying, but it distracts me from my work. How can I get her to stop?

An employee who would actually rather work than gossip over the water cooler? The HR department really scored when they hired you. While your fellow coworkers are wasting time on the company dollar, you're a self-motivated, hard worker who can work independently without supervision. If you want to quiet the office chatterbug, just tell her that you would love to hear all about her weekend but you're in the middle of a project at the moment. There are two possible scenarios here. The first is that her chattiness is innate in her personality and she is indeed just wasting company time. The second possible scenario is that she is trying to extend the hand of friendship to you by sharing her life with you. If the latter is the case then perhaps she would like to tell you her story over drinks after work? Or over lunch? I don't recommend coworkers getting their lives too entwined but strong interpersonal relationships at work create a happier, more productive environment and that's something the HR department can really get behind.