Today, I came in to work and found the conference room white boards completely clean. My assistant wiped all the white boards where I spent 10 hours writing schedule for the next three months. I was going to meet with all supervisors to finalize that schedule today. FML
I agree, your life sucks (21018) - you totally deserved it (3962)
On 11/03/2009 at 4:51pm - work - by CorpDrone (woman) - United States (Arizona)
Agreed, too.
But YDI because you should have written it down somewhere and/or typed it on the computer. Sure it took 10 hours writing it, but you have to remember that a lot of the 10 hours was spent thinking about what you were going to write on the board. So it wouldn't have taken that long to re-write it somewhere after you're done.
#56 - On 11/03/2009 at 9:46pm by dnlphm94
Hey, you are really cool. I "gooded" your comment because I really think that people who are second never get enough respect. It's always the first poster who gets all the fun.
To Everyone who's saying "Use a computer" she was ment to go over the schedule with her supervisors and MAKE CHANGES to it, which would be alot easier on a white board
#125 - On 11/04/2009 at 3:29pm by Fryar_fryze
that's stupid. you can edit things on the computer while they are being projected... AND save every few seconds.
#148 - On 11/13/2009 at 1:16am by salchichasmalas
She spent TEN HOURS writing that out, and she has a meeting concerning what had been written out today. Have fun re-writing.
#33 - On 11/03/2009 at 8:31pm by possumisawesome
You should have taped a piece of paper to the board to remind people not to erase it. That really sucks =/
Agreed you need to put up some kind of sign or atleast tell him not to erase it. If you spent 10 hours writing it you need to be more careful.
#60 - On 11/03/2009 at 10:24pm by plexicos_father
No I think that signs are a crutch that help dumb people to stay that way. I am old school I say throat punch him and make him re-write it.
#63 - On 11/03/2009 at 10:35pm by mobilicous
Who the hell erases stuff that isn't theirs?
This is a business setting. You don't touch other people's shit unless you have permission to do so.
#90 - On 11/04/2009 at 12:52am by bluelabeled
Agreed you should leave a note when you do such things it might be a custodian who wipes it next time .
Bingo!
Next time you want something to stay on the board... write PLO
#102 - On 11/04/2009 at 5:47am by maverick1031
that sucks... well the assistant is definitely a keeper ;)
#8 - On 11/03/2009 at 7:29pm by jessxoxo28
Yup in our office pretty much any time we have important information written on a white board we take a picture just in case something like this happens.
Also a post-it with "do not erase" wouldve easily prevented this...hell just letting your assistant know what you were working on and to leave it up wouldve prevented this!
Sorry to sound harsh but if you spend that long working on a project that is that important, you'd better back it up somehow otherwise you have no one else to blame but yourself. I just hope the OP didnt take this out on her assistant.
Geez people should stop getting all over the OP for this. You guys take pictures or stick post-its because you or someone before you experienced this before. However, the OP probably didn't even expect it since it has hardly ever happened before. You shouldn't expect her to prepare for what she didn't think of. Besides, after 10 hours, she was probably tired and just wanted to take a break.
The OP deserved it for not attempting to make sure said white boards were saved, which is just common sense. You're an idiot for defending the OP.
#95 - On 11/04/2009 at 1:40am by Major_General
So if I don't THINK something then it is not my fault? So if I forget to save my paper I get to tell my teacher, hey I didn't think it would delete itself. Can I please have an extension? Yeah right.
so they have FML on iphones. guess that means the person doesnt know how to use a computer huh? so much for the excel idea. back to the drawing board people!
#34 - On 11/03/2009 at 8:34pm by Plumppotato
You wouldn't use Excel for a schedule, you'd use Microsoft Project.
Of course, MS Project makes a lot of people commit suicide.
Lol, well, so long to your assistant then, I'm avaliable if you need a new one ;)
#13 - On 11/03/2009 at 7:35pm by Dcvictorious
#11 You want her to take a picture of a blank white board?
#14 - On 11/03/2009 at 7:37pm by bugmenotmofo
Many businesspersons use their phone for notes, that's all I'm saying. Not having time to type all that crap into an Excel sheet? That's understandable. But everyone has a phone...that can take pictures.
And, why would I want them to take a picture of a blank board #14? That doesn't make sense.
#18 - On 11/03/2009 at 7:44pm by violentturtle
Not everyone has a phone that takes pictures, actually. Try to remember that there are people in the world who aren't exactly like you.
#61 (comment: Not everyone has a phone that takes pictures, actually. Try to remember that there are people in the world who aren't exactly like you.)
LOL I don't think everyone is exactly like me. That would suck monkey balls. And, I realize that not everyone has a cell phone but I'm willing to take a chance and say that this businessperson probably does. I mean, everyone on the via bus has a cell phone. Even if they didn't have a cell phone, common sense MAY help. Stop taking this so seriously. FYL.
#136 - On 11/05/2009 at 1:15pm by violentturtle
Sometimes, it's hard to tell when people are joking or being serious on here.
#22 - On 11/03/2009 at 7:59pm by violentturtle
P.L.O... Palestine Liberation Organization?
Note: THIS IS A JOKE. XD
#26 - On 11/03/2009 at 8:10pm by PhoenixElite
Going against the crowd, I'm gonna say YDI. You can't expect people to be mind readers. If something very important can be very easily erased by someone, leave a note not to erase it.
I have to agree. Poor assistant had no idea, a simple "do not erase" would have helped.
#30 - On 11/03/2009 at 8:20pm by patticake1601
No no no OP. I think you have it wrong. your assistant is not a douche. He obviously carefully read your board and saw all of you horrible punctuation errors and erased it ALL so that you wouldn't be embarrased in front of all your corperate buddies. Thank him sometime.
oh shoot! I did not know that. Thank you so much kind ass for your news flash :3.
#71 said it first, how in the hell do you spend 10 hrs writing something on a whiteboard? How long is your workday that you can spend so long on that? Are you assistant #1 and assistant #2 decided to screw you over?
It might be possible this was meant to be one of those whiteboard that outlines procedure for months to come and is used only for that purpose. You still have one dumbass assistant and you still deserved it for not pointing it out.
Please suck my nuts. That's helping a cause also. And you must be 18+, so I don't get in trouble with Chris Hansen.
#47 - On 11/03/2009 at 9:12pm by FerrariCake
Its called email, idiot. 2009 and you're still using a whiteboard?! You're a dinosaur and if I were your boss I'd fire you for being a Luddite.
#41 - On 11/03/2009 at 8:41pm by thisisnotdave
Uh sorry to be rude but ur jus dumb....ur workin a corporation u ever heard of a computer and powerpoint ?...go back to high school
#42 - On 11/03/2009 at 8:48pm by MylifeROXX
If you're going to tell someone to go back to high school, maybe you shouldn't write like a middle schooler.
You know nothing about the OP or their company yet you think you know better how their scheduling should work?
#80 - On 11/03/2009 at 11:44pm by o0ginger0o
Who does important work on a white board?
Here's a helpful hint: next time, TAKE A PICTURE OF IT. Duh.
#46 - On 11/03/2009 at 9:09pm by FerrariCake
Why not take your paper you pre-wrote it on and Xerox it and hand the supervisors the schedule in your meeting.
Ever heard of P.L.O? PLEASE LEAVE ON!
==== = ======
= = = = =
= = = = =
= = = = =
= = = = =
= = = = =
= = = = =
= = = =
= ======= =====
#51 - On 11/03/2009 at 9:21pm by ClumsyJason
While you didn't deserve it, maybe this can be a lesson to keep important info somewhere more permanent. You could have made a google calendar to send to all supervisors, or something.
And thats why nowdays we have something called "Presentations" that you can do in several neat formats like power point, open office, flash and so on.
So, thats why i voted that you deserved it. Get on with the times.
#59 - On 11/03/2009 at 10:05pm by laos2542
fyl, but next time do it on your labtop and save it to a flashdrive just incase
#64 - On 11/03/2009 at 10:37pm by icanfloat12
It's the counters in the lab! Obviously he's trying to tell the OP to write it all on lab counters next time, amirite?
Unlike some people who apparently spend their entire lives reading all the comments to every FML (I assume you fall in this category), I just comment. I don't read all the comments to be sure mine isn't redundant. Because who gives a shit, they are comments on FML. Get a life.
Actually, reading the comments is half the fun. The comments can actually be funnier than the FML at times... ;)
And no offence, but they probably called you on it beacuse it was a lame joke, especially to be done twice.. lol Sorry :P
Reading the comments is 90% of the fun. Seriously, the FMLs usually suck. Once you get past the moderators and the character limit is when the real fun begins. If all you are commenting on is the OP's limited information then you really don't understand how this site is supposed to work.
#99 - On 11/04/2009 at 4:30am by MaddogTotten
Hey cybely. Your comment failed. And no, I dont read every comment, but I just happened to be online for an hour and was reading random FMLs, so yeah. Your comment was not as tough as it seemed as the other 2 people laughed at you. Moron.
I doubt that this is true, for a few reasons.
1. If you spent 10 hours writing all of this on a board, your assistant probably would have noticed. Thus he/she would have known to leave the writing up there instead of erasing it
2. How do you spend 10 HOURS writing something on the board? Do you seriously not have anything better to do with your day? If you were going over a schedule with supervisors, you're probably some kind of manager, which means you should have plenty of other work. Unless you did this over a period of a couple of days, but that doesn't seem sensible, because other people probably would have used the room (presumably a conference room) during that time and erased your stuff anyway.
3. Have you never heard of spreadsheets? Or even a word processor? Why not spend 2 hours typing it out and then email it to the supervisors for revision. Then bring a projector to the meeting (or hell, just make print-outs). Why spend 10 hours writing it on a board that'll get messy the instant you make a change?
Even if it's true, YDI for not taking the 10 seconds to write "Do Not Erase" on the board in big, bold letters. Or telling your assistant not to erase it. Or just making your assistant do it in the first place.
There are new technologies called LAPTOPS, and a PROJECTORS!
#72 - On 11/03/2009 at 11:12pm by canadian1192
Uh, yeah, that's why you make schedules on a computer and not a whiteboard. And avoid being OCD if at all possible.
*gavel bang*
#73 - On 11/03/2009 at 11:15pm by SVelasquez
Avoid being OCD? Yeah, THAT'S possible. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is just that, it's a disorder. It's not something you can ignore or "avoid", as you put it. I fail to see how mentioning OCD has anything to do with this post.
#119 - On 11/04/2009 at 12:09pm by headboarder
welcome to the 21st century. we have magical things called computers, pens, papers... all a hell of a lot better with saving things than a whiteboard. LMFAO. But I still call fake, coz seriously? sounds fake. =)
I clicked YDI only because if it was that important you should have had it written/typed up somewhere else as well. did you really think something left on your whiteboard was going to stay there that long? even if she hadn't erased it, someone easily could have tripped and wiped off half of it with their back.
#77 - On 11/03/2009 at 11:27pm by the_stereotype
Fire their ass. After making them rewrite it of course =]
#78 - On 11/03/2009 at 11:33pm by BelaLugosisdead
Too many negative votes, comment buried. Show the comment.
Just realized this was written by a woman. Go figure. A man would have known to warn someone not to erase it.
Get one of those computer pens which saves anything you write, or draw, to memory, and do it on computer first. Then get your assistant to write it on the whiteboard.
#85 - On 11/04/2009 at 12:24am by CLICKHEREx
Maybe just maybe the person did write it on paper then it took them 10hrs to copy itonto the board and what shocking assistant to not know what you been doing for 10hrs
#86 - On 11/04/2009 at 12:28am by mythicafairy
(1) You're assistant would've known better if you'd only told him first. I'm assuming you didn't.
(2) You don't use white boards as your only way of informational backup/provision. There's this incredible machine called a computer and a printer. Since you're apparently fluent enough to post an FML, it shouldn't be hard to grasp computer/printer use.
In other words, if it's not YDI for the first, it's already a definite YDI for the latter. If you took care of the first, at least it isn't solely your butt on the line; in that case, drag the assistant down with you. However, a note of caution might be to take the primary blame yourself (plenty of it is still your fault) unless you want to look like a self-righteous prick.
#92 - On 11/04/2009 at 1:32am by blastvortex
I have a few comments here.
First of all, no one ever writes anything worth keeping on an erasable board. There is a reason why they are so easy to erase, they are for temporary use.
Second, you should have used a computer if one was available to you. I don't know about Microsoft project, but excel works for almost any situation.
Third, just because it took you 10 hours to figure out the first time doesn't mean it should take another 10 to recreate it. If you used any kind of rational thought during the process you should be able to remember your rational decisions and rewrite them. It should take an hour, tops. If you know why you decided what you did it should be fresh in your mind. Postponing your meeting for an hour would hardly ruffle any feathers, especially if it was as important as you say.
And finally, fourth, if you have an assistant, you should be important enough, or smart enough to make sure that they are up to speed on what you know so that they are aware of what you are doing, or could even make judgment calls in your absence. They aren't just there for your amusement, you should be teaching them something.
#97 - On 11/04/2009 at 4:25am by MaddogTotten
No problem, I do what I can.
Consequently the longer I am up and the more I have to drink, the better the insight seems to get. Let me tell you, this is pure gold right here baby.
#113 - On 11/04/2009 at 9:32am by MaddogTotten
For something that I have spend 10 hours on, I'll be sure I have copied it down one way or another..
#100 - On 11/04/2009 at 5:42am by WonderBlunder
What a lot of great advice for the OP here. I hope she's learned from the comments if not from the experience. If it's not already clear, let's see:
1. Whiteboards are for temporary work that can be erased without a moment's notice (see recent experience).
2. Use something more permanent to capture the work of many hours - (insert favourite Microsoft technology here) or even use permanent markers on flipcharts. Anything but whiteboards.
I wonder how the meeting went? Whose job is most at risk? The administrator who made sure the white boards were clean before a big meeting or the presenter who failed to make a permanent copy of her work?
#104 - On 11/04/2009 at 6:14am by wellinever
Not exactly a reason to fire anyone, at least not here in Germany...
However, if you work at a company you should be able to rely on your coworkers. It's not school anymore and they should be grown-up enough to not stupidly erase the black..eh...whiteboard just so their teacher/boss will give them a treat.
It's the place where you work and earn money. You should be over that stuff. This is no kindergarten...
It's kinda funny that so many people cry she should use a computer, get on with the times, etc...
It's kinda funny too that the companies I work and worked for never used a computer-based system for work schedules or were switching from a computer based system to a...well..."outdated" one. And that aren't small companies...
I agree it sucks now the valuable lesson is next time leave a note not to erase the board without your consent ... probably that won't f*** up ur life that much ...
#107 - On 11/04/2009 at 6:54am by LiarPantsFire
With the amount of technology resources and collaborative tools available, there is no reason to be doing this on a white board. Seriously.
A ''Do Not Erase'' thingie maybe would have prevent it, but really, i dont think that anyone should whipe off a whiteboard full of writing without even knowing who wrote it or permission, that sucks for you, Op.
First. Make him re-write it....Then. Make a contract that he buys your breakfast lunch and dinner for the next 10 weeks. And has to be your slave for the next 10 days. Tell him 10 hours of my time is more than 10 weeks of yours..then call him an idiot and fire him....xD
#110 - On 11/04/2009 at 9:02am by bsias4ever
So you spent 10 hours working on something but didn't do anything to preserve it? It was bound to happen.
It's the conf room board, not yours. You had no reasonable expectation of monopolizing the board, esp. w/o telling the appropriate people. What would you had done if the boss walked in 8 hrs into your writing and said "I need the room to meet w/ someone in 10 mins. Please clear the board before you leave."??
The cleaning crew could have cleaned the board if your assistant didn't. How do you know it was your assistant? Another assumption?!?!? See the trend here?!?
WFT good is a schedule on a white board?? I'm sure the supervisors would want something in a file or printed out.
Ergh. Like a few other people have said... Microsoft Project.
The people that suggested "typing it" are retards and haven't heard of MS Project, probably just like you.
YDI for assuming a conference room board is yours and for relying on ink and plastic instead of a hard drive.
I had no idea time machines existed until now.
You must be a caveman. How does it feel living in the twenty-first century? You must be in shock by all the handy new gadgets we have created, such as the COMPUTER. *gasp*
Dumbass.
#122 - On 11/04/2009 at 1:47pm by luvrainxoxo
The FML comes when OP has to tell her boss why she wasn't prepared for her meeting with the supervisors.
'My assistant erased it' must be the corp. equivilant to 'My dog ate it'.
But an 'F' in corp. means you're out of a job.
Bull. =)
There's no way that writing something took 10 hours. No, I'm not old enough to have that kind of job, I'll admit, but there's NO way that a schedule would take 10 hours.
And, even if it did, why wouldn't you tell your assistant or put a simple, "Do Not Erase" sign?
YDI.
LOL at all the comments. OP prob thought in her head that this was an fml...until she reads all the comments and realises that everyone thinks she's a fucktard. I hope she reads all the comments!
lesson learned. if something needs to last a while, make a hard copy
#129 - On 11/04/2009 at 5:20pm by dragonflygal
who the fuck writes something that important on a white board. like forreal if someone even bumped into on accident half of it could have got erased. you should lose your job.
#130 - On 11/04/2009 at 5:22pm by killadelphia215
i dont think u people realize that its probably easier to write out a schedule on a whiteboard...its easier to make quick changes...and she said they were having a meeting to finalize it the next morning..which mean last minute changes could be made.maybe thats how they do things at the company.
Its an FML and a YDI. you should have told the assistant.
My guess is that her assistant has been chewed out in the past for the time they forgot to clean up the boss' whiteboard during their morning work day prep and so they just followed the last orders they had been given.
Even if that WASN'T the case, YDI completely for the exact reasons others have stated: Excel (and then have your assistant spend 15 mins transferring to white board), taking a pic with your Blackberry (any company that has conference rooms with whiteboards and takes 10 hours to schedule three months for is going to be handing out Crackberries like they're Cracker jack prizes, especially to executives high enough to rate an assistant and be in charge of scheduling) or the ever obvious PLO note.
Sorry, you're and idiot and flat out deserve zero pity. I won't go so far as to say I hope you get fired for your incompetence, but I do certainly hope you get reprimanded for it and it affects next year's salary review.
If it takes you 10 hours to write your schedule on a whiteboard there is something wrong. Try typing it out next time.
I someone I employed took 10 hours to write out a 3 month schedule I'd fire them. There are either very slow or very useless.
Aww...too bad...wait i forgot..who's the one who has such an crappy assistant, and not typing up your schedule?Oh wait, that's you.:(
#144 - On 11/08/2009 at 1:24am by jessica171
1. Fire the assistant.
2. Take a picture with your camera phone of anything important like that, especially if it's on a white board. Had it not been your assistant, it could've been someone else.
3. Type it in the computer, make a hardcopy, THEN put it on the whiteboard.
