To be irritable with colleague?

[Ezlo]

Colleague knows I finish at 5pm. He asks lots of questions and I always help. Tonight he asked me to come and look at something at 4.55pm. After a day of many questions, I was a bit irritated by this and told him I must go in five minutes and that I had stuff to do. It's not like me to be short tempered but I was. I feel he doesn't always respect other people's time. Now I feel bad.

You were not unreasonable to feel irritated. Is your colleague new in role? Can you talk with your manager about a plan to make him more self-sufficient.

He is quite new in role. I don't usually mind helping him but rather than ask if I have time to go over x and x, he'll just sidle up to my desk and start talking. If I start to talk he will talk over me. He's pleasant but I have a limit and it's about to tip.

YANBU. I used to have a boss who knew I had to leave dead on 5pm. Wouldn't speak to me all day until ten to five.

I wouldnt say he is pleasant if he is hassling you as you prep to leave - and he knows it.

I would say he is a cunt or ignorant twat.

Be firm, tell him dont ask any Q's 5 mins before I leave as I wont respond until the next working day and then proceed to ignore. Fuck him. He has all day to ask Q's, not in the last 5 mins.

That is pure cunty.

Just tell him he'll need to book a time in, when he sidles up.

@HelplessSoul Why do you not believe OP when she says he is generally pleasant?

OP - Is he relatively inexperienced ? Could you offer the following feedback either directly or through his line manager:

Not always respectful/aware of other people's time. Would work better for me if we plan/book times I can help him rather than feeling like i'm being ambushed. And agree that last few mins of the day is off limits?

If he is an agreeable sort as you say he is, he will probably adapt to and accept boundaries being set.

@Letsgetalong I made the point about the pleasantness vis a vis the OPs desire to leave on time.

Ergo, he is not being pleasant then, is he? As clearly demonstrated by the OP saying shes irritated.

@HelplessSoul Yes I got all that, I was just a bit a bit baffled by your phrasing and your assumption of malevolent intent. He might just be a bit clueless and need redirecting.

Not malevolent intent - its simply twattery/cuntery to be asking questions 5mins before the end of someones working day - regardless of how long it takes to answer said question.

Just politely say, 'I'll have a look first thing tomorrow'. No need to be offhand about it, it might not have noticed the time.