To feel like resigning to avoid a horrible team building event

[evilharpy]

It's been announced that my team (of about 15, all of whom I like but most of whom I don't know very well at all) is being sent to a team building event at the end of February. It's three days. Residential. Outdoor physical stuff. In February. It will be wet and freezing. We will have to share rooms. I hate the outdoors, especially when it's wet and freezing. I hate physical stuff unless it's a nice gym-based class. I will have to buy suitable outdoor clothes. And most of all I hate hate hate sharing rooms even with very close friends and will be desperately uncomfortable and miserable the entire time. The only way it could possibly be worse is if it involved camping.

I won't actually resign obviously (for one thing my notice period is longer than the end of Feb) but I will probably worry about it every single day until it's over.

Has anyone been on anything similar and can either confirm that it will be miserable or convince me that it might actually be fun?

I am a Guide leader and would do some of these things for pleasure. But not in February. And not with colleagues.
I like hill walking and a colleague sometimes organises social walks. I never go because a) I can't stand him and b) part of the reason for that is that he used to be my line manager and gave me huge grief over never being able to work past the time the workplace nursery closes (well doh) and he always also organises these social walks for times/days when I can't go for childcare reasons (e.g. we've all got a really late meeting one week and I arrange for DH to pick up the DCs, so he suggests we let our hair down by going for a summer evening walk 4-7pm the next followed by a pub dinner).
Basically this screams "men with no home responsibilities". I'd find your own DCs/cat/elderly DM/neighbour with hospital appointment to get out of it.

I actually really enjoy the outdoorsey ropes courses, raft building stuff but I know a lot of people really don’t.

However, not only have I had to share a room on many occasions, in at least 3 occasions I’ve had to share a BED with a colleague that I didn’t know well. This was working for massive IT company in swanky London hotels, company with loads of money, before the 2008 recession. Mortifying.

In my previous role I was in charge of booking travel and accommodation for 3 day training for all new store staff members across the country. Was always 2 to a room with people that didn't know eachother for the most part.

I hated telling people that they would be sharing. Embarrassing conditions always got someone a single room. From IBS to sleep walking and talking tend to work.

You cannot be forced to share with someone but the majority of people won't object whether they are uncomfortable or not.

I think these residential things are wrong. So unreasonable to expect this from employees.

Genuinely I would say partner has to be away with work and I had to leave after day one. That at least shows willing. If you’ve been there a while you should be able to recover from not attending the whole thing and if childcare is an issue that’s the end of it.

I once had a team away day which involved a scavenger hunt. In the cold and wet. I said my recently fractured foot was playing up and so was my asthma and went to the pub instead. Nobody noticed or commented.

I worked for an outdoor activities venue when I was in my twenties, and thoroughly enjoyed myself - chance to do all the activities in my free time, gorgeous scenery, loads of live in staff so plenty of people to socialise with, etc.

We had lots of school groups doing courses at the centre, but also lots of ‘management’ groups doing team building - they would all be staying in dorm rooms with bunk beds and shared bathrooms.

At the time, I didn’t think anything of it - now I wonder how the hell people coped spending that much time in close proximity to their colleagues. The. Absolute. Horror.

No way do you have to go on a residential thing with colleagues and SHARE A ROOM! Just no. You don't need an excuse, just say you will not share a room with colleagues. Bad enough making you go away for 3 days but absolutely no way can they make you share a room. I'm genuinely horrified at this!

I think this stuff is appalling. People just need to do their jobs, not go on this weird shit.

I would absolutely hate to share a room. I think as an adult it's quite a personal intrusion and horrible invasion of privacy.

Ugh. Team building flashback. Kayaking in fecking Fermanagh. Having to build a bridge across an imaginary river using planks and rope and a collection of idiots. Being accused of unhelpfulness when I refused point blank to perform a rap ( )about how great the company was (worst example of the profession I have ever encountered). Trying really bloody hard, in a uncontrollable spoor of misanthropic intent, to ‘accidentally’ shoot my boss during the archery session, and nearly managing to take his ear.

Do you know what would have been more effective? Actual staff management. Separating the cliques. Respecting their professional staff. Not shagging everything willing and promoting the shagee above their scant abilities. Trying really hard to keep the cocaine binges outside office hours. Little things like that. Not hypothermic ‘team building’ using people’s holiday time to trap them on an island with people they hate.

And people ask me why I left.

Run, OP. Run for the hills. No job is worth that.

Miserable, cold, miserable and cold, miserable cold and injured. Those are the only outcomes.

'in at least 3 occasions I’ve had to share a BED with a colleague that I didn’t know well. '

That is fucked up!

I am so very happy that I am long enough in the tooth and close enough to the end of my career to be able to suggest to my employers that they go fuck themselves if ever they try anything like this.

72+ hours of time dedicated to the company? Must be amazing overtime

Who on earth promotes this nonsense?

Went on one once we did a pit stop for a racing car in a team in Italy. It was quite fun but I was single, childfree and in my twenties. Would detest it now.

Being asked to share a room with a colleague is super fucking weird. Your employer is the one BU.

Oh just do it.
Wear appropriate clothing, keep as warm & dry as you can & throw yourself into the experience.
Take it as a chance to get to know the people you work with & share some novel experiences with them.
Bits of it will be fun!

Keep a detailed diary and tell us about it.

Christ, I RUN team building events and this sounds awful.

I would refuse to share a room. But I would cop out and make up sleep problems or IBS or something to get out of it.

It is just terrible to be forced to be at work 24 hours a day.

Cunts.

Do you have DC? If so, go with what a previous poster suggested and claim childcare difficulties. Maybe your DP is away that week for some completely unavoidable commitment and you therefore can't also be away from home...?

I don't think sharing with a colleague would bother me that much (although I'd hardly look forward to it) but the outdoorsy activities in the rain and cold, in February....that is my idea of hell.

Our teambuilding usually involves visiting a garden, sampling a range of cakes from the cafe and then fucking off home. Overnight stays? Get to fuck.

I would develop snoring or sleep apnoea and insist on my own room. Also insist your employer pay for outdoor gear you need.

Definitely hell on earth.

instead of making stuff up, or making look like you are really keen then dropping others in the shit, why don't you find out how the others feel about it and then go to the boss as a spokes person for those that don't want to do it?

I dont see how 'teambuilding' can exclude people who aren't fit enough to do it, cant afford the gear, or have kids or elderly relatives to look after.

What do single parents do with their children if they are expected to go away for 3 days for work?