To be puzzled at knitting in meetings

[JoanThursday1972]

I go to a few cross-organisation working groups and meetings. One woman always brings her knitting - I was really surprised. Is this a thing now to bring crafting projects to meetings?

Most of the comments here indicate that it actually aids 100% attention. I always doodled in meetings, it’s exactly the same thing.

Eccentric but harmless. Wouldn't have a problem with it.

I used to work with a partner who would take her crossword to a meeting - and was still able to quote legislation at us while she was doing it!

I have Tourette’s and crotcheting means I focus better

Knitting needles do make a noise my mums did. Very distracting snd unprofessional

I tried needle felting during teams meetings and nearly lost a finger so I've gone back to my fidget pen/cube/yanking my necklace about. I'm not on camera though.

I also have ADHD but would never knit during a meeting - talk about self-sabotaging your career! Doesn't matter if it helps you concentrate, it unfortunately looks incredibly unprofessional and especially so on women. Yes, mysogyny is the main problem here, but don't be surprised if you'll be asked to serve coffee and refreshments in all future meetings.

It's also a bit inconsiderate as the clickety-clack will definitely annoy some people or make it hard for them to concentrate. Doodling or taking copious notes is a much better option to keep your hands busy.

It's the same mindset as placing your phone on the table, signalling that your the others present don't warrant undivided attention/ are not a priority.

I'd gushingly ask for a closer look at their lovely craft then whoops, needle falls out of stitches.

The noise is a separate issue, it is possible to get wooden needles or to knit slowly, both of which vastly reduce or eliminate noise. There should be no need for the knitting to be noisy and if it is the knitter needs to fix it or stop.

However if there is no noise to distract people then how is it unprofessional?

I have adhd and can absorb and listen so much more intently with a notepad and pen to doodle, I think the knitting is performing the same function essentially. Although I agree I might have raised an eyebrow is someone just got the knitting out and cracked on. But perhaps she has an agreement in place with management and it isn’t for anyone else to concern themselves with.

I’m autistic, I crochet in meetings. It helps me concentrate and keeps my panic at bay. It creates a safe barrier for me. It’s a reasonable adjustment for my particular disability.

@ChinoiserieNerd It doesn't seem to have done her career any harm, she's well thought of. I don't know if she's neurodivergent or not.

I always ask if people mind, and explain it helps my brain to concentrate. I have never yet had anyone say they minded and it often sparks a great conversation. I knit the straight bit of socks, not the heel turn or heel flap or toe, and I have been knitting for so many years I don’t need to look down.
I use tiny wooden needles and they don’t make a sound, unlike the metal ones of my youth.
I would stop if it bothered people, but by moving to the back of the room, someone at the front would never see my hands move at all.

and to the lady with the genuine phobia, I would of course take my knitting back out to my car.

the rest of you are totally without understanding of the ND brain and that is quite salutary in 2023 workplaces

Picking up stitches is also a massive concentration aid, so you would have done me a favour 😀

I was in an online meeting yesterday with some pretty high fliers and I was surprised to see someone knitting. On mute so couldn't hear them but it felt a bit mutli-tasky (she probably sells knitted items on Etsy!)

I'm sure it's fine in some workplaces / industries or if you're already well established, there'll always be exceptions to the rule. Still doesn't mean it's a good idea and it probably will be annoying for others.

As I said above, I totally get the need to keep your hands busy / do something on the side, but I'm also one of those people who would find someone knitting next to me really distracting.

Modern knitting needles don’t click and clack. I’ve never heard needles click and clack even at large knitting circles and I’m certain sensitive to noise. I don’t know if that is a myth or if it refers to needles no one uses anymore, not even the primarily senior citizen women at my mother’s knitting meetings 20 years ago.

I’ve never been able to allow myself to bring my knitting to work, but I wish I would. I used to doodle to try to stay focused, but we don’t even really take notes on paper anymore so I can’t do that.

if It’s a teams call I have a collection of silent fidgets I can use out of camera view because doodling tends to take my eyes off the screen.

I have ADHD and I doodle or note-take elaborately to aid my concentration in meetings. I wouldn’t mind someone else knitting if it helped them. You don’t know what other people’s reasonable adjustments at work are (unless they share). As long as they perform, why does it matter?

Selling knitted items on Etsy isn’t really profitable. The odds that she is knitting items to sell are slim.

I know, I was joking!

I would crochet in meetings if I didn’t have to lip read / read captions. I doodle instead. I would have an issue with someone else knitting/crochet/whatever as long as I can still see their face/mouth when they are talking.

I used to bring knitting to pubs when I was in my early twenties. I thought it made me look classy, quirky, clever and interesting.

Now I'm in my 30s, I can clearly see that it didn't, and that I was a total twat in my early 20s.

I benefit from doing things with my hands while I'm concentrating, and I work in a slightly-south-of-informal office, but no way would I bring knitting to a meeting. The clicking, movement (and sheer pretension) would drive other people mad. I occasionally use a stim tool, and keep it small and neutral coloured, and not right out in front of me.

Probably a disability adjustment.
People though are always critical of disability adjustments for adults when they would not think twice about them for children.

Could you tell all my [male, incidentally] colleagues that, given that they're making all sorts of "fidgeting and silly repetitive little movements" in said meetings by answering their emails/checking the news/reading Twitter on the laptop, opening their paper mail, reading their papers for the next meeting, fiddling on their phones, clicking their pens, slurping tea loudly, doodling and making disgruntled sighing noises, often while whispering to each other? Yet these all seem acceptable to the powers that be.

I often knit quietly and fairly inobtrusively in the meetings, and I started doing that because their goofing off bothered me. Knitting helps me ignore all that and concentrate on the content and contribute.

Basically, 'knitting in meetings is bad' (and apparently, judging from some responses, causing the Downfall of Civilisation and such) is a very blanket statement. Depends on the workplace, depends on the meeting, depends on the attendees and the business being done, depends on the physical space arrangements, depends on the knitting project, depends on the needles.

It's like the person last week who kicked the passenger in front's seat instead of just asking her to put the seat up during the meal. Can you not just say, "I'm sorry, I'm finding that very distracting/uncomfortable, would you mind holding off until later?"

I knit at conferences. It helps me concentrate and stops the twitter/WhatsApp/IG loop I get into sometimes on my phone.

Work meetings I’m often chairing so don’t have the need to focus headspace.

I use bamboo needles so it’s not noisy and I really don’t think it’s that distracting for others.