Many people love to eat well, and some even try to combine this with attempts to eat well for free. We have told you stories about office food stealers more than once—but today's tale definitely stands out from the crowd.
The author of the story that we're going to tell you today, user u/sxrllyya, recently encountered repeated—and quite impudent—attempts by one of her colleagues to try her delicious cooking by hook or by crook. Moreover, having received a rebuff, this lady also tried to shift the blame onto our heroine... However, let's not get ahead of ourselves.
More info: Reddit
The author of the post is a decent home cook, and she likes to bring some tasty food to her office to eat during lunchtime
Image credits: Drazen Zigic / Freepik (not the actual photo)
One of the author's colleagues also likes her cooking and started to coax her to let her try at least a piece
Image credits: sxrllyya
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The colleague went on hinting that the author should have been cooking for other employees to make the team atmosphere better
Image credits: sxrllyya
Image credits: Kaboompics.com / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The author kept refusing—and the real drama broke out when she brought a special dish she had cooked for her wedding anniversary
Image credits: sxrllyya
The colleague once again asked for a piece and blamed our heroine for being 'selfish' after facing another refusal
So, the Original Poster (OP) is 22 years old, works for a company, and is, in her own words, a quite decent cook. At least one of our heroine's colleagues—let's call her "Lisa," has repeatedly expressed interest in the food that the author brought to the office and regularly asked to try a piece. At least a very small piece.
As time went on, Lisa began to hint how nice it would be for the OP to cook for her coworkers, too—after all, her food was so delicious! But our heroine didn't think she should actually do any catering for other employees. Things got worse when the OP brought a special dish she had cooked for a wedding anniversary with her spouse to the office kitchen.
Lisa tried to approach from different angles, literally licking her lips at the exquisite dish and then asked to try a piece again. This time, the original poster responded with a flat-out 'No'—after all, it was a festive dish intended for only two—herself and her husband! But Lisa, as Michael Jordan used to say, "took it personally..."
In the presence of other employees, right in the kitchen, she pounced on the author with reproaches for being 'selfish and rude.' After all, according to Lisa, if the OP regularly treated her coworkers to her cooking, this would have a positive effect on the team atmosphere. She spoke so confidently that the OP even felt embarrassed—was she doing the right thing? And she decided to ask folks online for advice.
Image credits: ROMAN ODINTSOV / Pexels (not the actual photo)
"It was absolutely outrageous. Demanding other people's food and disguising it as concern for the well-being of colleagues is completely inappropriate mind games on the part of any coworker," says Irina Matveeva, a psychologist and certified NLP specialist, with whom Bored Panda got in touch for a comment here. "In fact, such behavior actually spoils the atmosphere in the office.
"Of course, no one is obliged to treat other people in the office just because they can cook well, and others cannot. If you want exquisite delicious food, there are many expensive restaurants at your service. And attempting to trick colleagues into what you demand is completely unacceptable.
"Sure, this woman is absolutely right to stand up to such an insolent demand, and I do believe it makes sense to report this situation to HR or to the employee's direct higher-ups. I'm almost certain that managers will side with common sense and tell off the insolent employee," Irina concludes.
People in the comments on the original post completely sided with our heroine, supporting her decision not to share food with the entitled colleague, even urging her to take action to stop her. "She is creating a hostile work environment," someone reasonably wrote in the comments. And do you, our dear readers, also agree with this interpretation of what happened?
However, people in the comments unanimously sided with the author, suggesting she report this entitled lady to HR
When navigating challenges with demanding coworkers, understanding effective ways to manage workplace conflicts can be invaluable. For instance, exploring strategies that demonstrate the true value of one's contributions can help in setting boundaries and asserting oneself with difficult colleagues.
You might find useful insights in this approach to showing work efforts helpful in similar situations.