Last week when I was out of town for a few days, I visited a gym. This was a small gym in a rec center, like you may find in a pretty good hotel. I had been there about 30 minutes when a woman came in, settled into a corner, and got on her phone.
She didn’t start texting or finding music to listen to on her headphones. She put her AirPods in her ears, then started a lengthy conversation with a colleague about a deal they were putting together.
Crunches on the mat = “We went through this with them last time.”
Seated dumbbell raises = “I told her we can’t do that.”
Lunges down the floor = “Let’s look at some options to make this happen.”
She treated the room as though she were alone in her house, speaking full volume, striding around the space as she went from one exercise to the next. The room had been silent when she came in, and there were six other people there, working out.
She wasn’t alone. We were all there, subject to her 20 minute conversation. Her talking completely changed the feeling in the room, and I finished up early to get away.
Just because we can work anywhere, doesn’t mean we should.
