Embarrassing Office Gaffes? Join the Club

December 16, 2005 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Even corporate executives do dumb and embarrassing things at work.

For example, people who work in the C-suite apparently aren’t immune to apparel gaffes like:

  • Making a presentation with your zipper at half mast
  • Making it all the way to the office before discovering two different shoes on your feet
  • Discovering as you leave the gym one morning that your work clothes are at home.

These insights into various executive miscues are from a new survey sponsored by OfficeTeam a Menlo Park, California temporary staffing firm. “No professional is immune to the occasional work mishap,” said Diane Domeyer, executive director of OfficeTeam, in a news release . “Acknowledging an awkward situation, apologizing to the appropriate colleague, if necessary, and not dwelling on it are good ways to bounce back from even the most uncomfortable scenario.”

In addition to clothes missteps, executives had some blunders in other areas as well including some who were apparently doing their best Three Stooges imitation. The red-faced respondents recounted that:

  • “I stumbled and fell on my face when I tripped over the carpet.”
  • “In a meeting, I spilled coffee all over myself.”
  • “While speaking at a business event, I fell off the stage.”

Meanwhile, some respondents to the OfficeTeam poll occasionally had a tough time keeping their in-the-office emotions in check:

  • “I hugged the senior manager on my first day of work.”
  • “While interviewing a job candidate, I fell asleep.”

From the inevitable senior moments department came these misfires:

  • “Calling the CEO by the wrong name”
  • “Leaving the boss behind and going to a meeting without him”
  • “Showing up for work on a Sunday thinking it was Monday.”

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