Comments on: When You Have to Keep Up With the Joneses

By: CindyM

CindyM — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 13:29:53 +0000

He probably won’t be able to fool these coworkers with the “I’m on a diet” excuse for long, and if he’s truly of a frugal bent, putting money aside so he can use it for expensive lunches will continually drive him nuts. Hope he works slowly but surely on finding another position that’s not so stifling to his personality.

By: Gail

Gail — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 08:10:48 +0000

He is lucky he even has the option of eating in. My brother had a job once where the guys weren’t allowed to bring their lunch as their eating out was helping to uphold the companies image. don’t know if the company paid for their lunches but I thought it odd. I’m enough of a don’t keep up with the Joneses that a job like that wouldn’t even interest me.

By: baselle

baselle — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 04:12:29 +0000

Good strategies up above. I’d continue – time to watch and learn your first few months. Note the lunches that are productive in this way, and the ones that are not. For example, which lunches does your boss/peers attend, which ones not? (If your boss works half-Fridays, likely that the Friday lunches can be safely avoided.) Are some/all/any lunches expensed? Once upon a time, if you talked shop it was considered a “business lunch” – this is especially the case in outside sales and there is an outside client involved. Ask quietly whether one is expected to save receipts.

This is not an uncommon problem. 20 years ago I worked in a sales office where a fair amount of business was done after hours at various “adult” venues, and I had to save the receipts for them to be expensed. It was quite discriminatory if you were a woman, or just wasn’t interested in spending for that sort of thing.

By: Scott

Scott — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 13:14:55 +0000

I would second what Bben says as that was my first thought. After a bit he might find that one or two days a week the discussions are less work related, and if so he should pick those days to work out at lunch time instead (Gym, running, whatever) to back up the “need to lose weight” message. Perhaps there are some things that can be high culture but low cost that he could convince some co-workers to go to once in a while (try monthly to start) instead of the epensive lunch (museums?). Try to “brand” himself as high cultured but thinking outside the box.

By: Bben

Bben — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 10:05:31 +0000

Publicly announce you are on a diet and are trying to lose weight. Possibly you could say it’s doctors orders – and what doctor isn’t going to tell you to lose a little weight. Then when you go out with the crowd, order something inexpensive, such as a small side salad, and only drink water – the drinks in a restaurant can be expensive. Not only will it not cost as much as a full meal, but you will actually avoid the inevitable weight gain of eating a full meal at lunch every day. And might actually lose some weight.

By: Anita

Anita — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 03:45:04 +0000

Break the mold buddy and be you!

By: Kacy

Kacy — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 01:46:54 +0000

I am often in a similar situation at work. Maybe he could take a snack with him to work and have a small, inexpensive item at lunch. If he descretely eats a peanut butter sandwich, then he can be satisfied with a salad or soup at lunch and no one will know. Also if he can tactfully suggest that lunches would be more enjoyable if they did not have to discuss work outside of the office he might create a habit. Then on the days he chooses not to join, he might not miss as much.

By: Joan.of.the.Arch

Joan.of.the.Arch — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 16:34:11 +0000

I think this person needs to calculate the percentage of pay that is being wasted away just to have the job.