Are there cliches at your company?

I never thought I would encounter cliches once I started working. Frankly, I don’t know why I wouldn’t expect cliches. I work in a big company, and it’s human nature to be accepted or not accepted by certain groups. But I figured we had all grown beyond high school. I don’t think people actually notice they are part of a cliche. Most people see it as hanging out with people they are familiar with in life. So how did I notice? Well, I don’t fit in the cliches. As an outsider, you tend to notice the patterns!

Here are the cliches I have identified so far:

• The single, 30 year old males
• The single moms
• The married moms with kids under 8 years old
• The single females under 30
• The Interns
• The executives (of course, they have a click!)
• The managers
• The managers who pretend to be executives in their head

Of course, there’s always the cliches related to departments and department teams! You can’t forget those!

I’m having a hard time fitting in to one cliche. I’m 22, married, no kids, full time specialist. I didn’t come in as an intern. I have noticed many different ways people look at me. One, I look and sound extremely young. Maybe, I’m just paranoid, but I do feel like people look down on me because I’m so young. Two, even though I’m small, I eat a lot for my size! I feel bad for all the women who are older than me and their lean cuisines. Some women have actually called me out and said I’m lucky for being young, slim, childless, and being able to eat whatever I want. In my defense, I eat healthy (try to most of the time) and I work out a lot!

I’m almost glad I don’t fit into a group. I like being unique, and I don’t want to fit into a specific mold.

People for the most part are really nice to me, but it’s just nice enough. I still don’t fit in to any particular group, other than my team :).

Does your company have work cliches?