❗Let's close the gap: We still need your help to raise $40,000 by April 1. Donate now
Make Me Smart With Kai and Molly

What’s your weird workplace habit?

Tony Wagner Jun 30, 2017

You can set your watch by Kai Ryssdal’s dental hygiene. When he emerges from the restroom — toothbrush in hand, breath minty fresh — and begins his brisk walk toward the studio, you know it’s very nearly 2 p.m. sharp, when Marketplace tapes live every weekday.

Its Kai’s self-proclaimed weirdest work ritual and look, we all have them, even if you don’t work in an office. From her home in Oakland, California, Molly Wood schedules conference calls around her dog’s schedule. Bystanders might think she’s executing a walk-and-talk with a furry, pooping Josiah Bartlett.

This week on Make Me Smart, Kai and Molly are celebrating these and all workplace quirks with Jennifer Romolini, author of “Weird in a World That’s Not: A Career Guide for Misfits, F*ckups, and Failures.” 

In that spirit, I asked the Marketplace staff and all of you about your strangest workplace habits. You didn’t disappoint. Fair’s fair though. I’ll start:

“My diet for a long time was to only eat when there was free food at work,” Marketplace developer Arjuna Soriano told me. “So I would usually end up eating nothing or like three donuts.”

“I keep pillows on the floor in my sound booth, Ermentrude,” Marketplace reporter Sally Herships told me. That’s the name of the booth: Ermentrude. “So usually I’m just sitting on a pillow, on the ground while I’m doing interviews.”

She sent a picture:

My colleague Brandon Echter, over at Science Friday, messes around with settings in the work group chat:

Can you top any of these workplace weirdos? Send us your best stories and we’ll add ’em to the list! Tweet your responses to @Marketplace or leave a response in the comments. 

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.