Employee is tired every time she calls her coworker she puts her on speaker, so she takes advantage of that and starts saying truths that expose her coworker: 'Now you know how I feel every time you put me on speaker without asking.'

Author image for María Cetra
María Cetra • Writer
Aug 23, 2026 1:00 PM EDT

Sometimes you have to do some uncomfortable things to make yourself clear on your boundaries.

People will sometimes act as if they understood you when you explained a boundary, but then continue to act the way they were acting even though you explained it made you uncomfortable. Why is that? Are they dumb? Do they just not care? Are they bad people? I'm actually not really sure why this happens, but I know it is extremely frustrating. Sometimes the worst part about putting boundaries is not the conversation you have to have, but the fact that you have to reinstate them every two minutes because people aren't able to actually and fully understand them.

I hate the people that have this attitude of not really paying attention to you or what you say. Or maybe they do pay attention and just decide to do the complete opposite of what you asked for. I don't know. But this is especially frustrating when it happens at work or with coworkers. You have to see that people every single day, so if they don't stop doing that thing that bothers you, then it would mean that you will have to put up with that thing every single day, for years.

This story in u/JustNoCoworker is a great example of how to deal with this kind of person, especially when you have to work with them every day. The employee was tired of her coworker putting every work phone call in speaker mode in the office, as it made other people able to hear it and she felt like she wouldn't be able to speak freely. So she gave her coworker a taste of her own medicine. She decided to vent all these coworker office secrets so that everyone was able to hear them, and she would finally understand how she feels when she puts the phone calls on speaker mode. It worked. So good for her! So maybe this is the way to deal with people like this: a taste of their own medicine works like a charm. 

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  • I work in an open-plan office. Desks everywhere. No privacy. "Lisa" sits three feet away from me. She takes calls all day. Personal calls. Doctor's appointments. Planning her kid's birthday party. Complaining about her husband. We all hear everything. But the worst part? She puts ME on speakerphone when I call her. Every time I need to ask her something, she picks up and suddenly my voice is blasting across the entire floor. She never says, "Hey, you're on speaker." She just does it.
    via Ok_Algang

  • The employee puting her coworker in speaker phone

    Woman talking on the phone. Featured likenesses do not identify those mentioned.
    via Vitaly Gariev

    Woman talking on the phone. 

    Featured likenesses do not identify those mentioned. 

  • I've asked her twice to stop. She laughed and said, "Oh, I just like to be hands-free!" Last week, I heard her on the phone with a client. She was being so sweet and professional. Then she hung up and immediately said to another coworker: "That client is such an idiot. can't stand her." That gave me an idea. Yesterday, I needed to ask Lisa a work question. I called her from my desk. She picked up. I heard the echo- definitely on speaker. I kept my voice
    via Ok_Algang
  • completely normal. "So Lisa," I said, "just to confirm-you said last week that the Johnson account is a lost cause and you hate dealing with them, right?" Silence. She scrambled. "What? No-I never- II "Oh wait," I continued, "and you also said the new intern has 'zero potential' and you don't want to waste time on him. Is that still your opinion?" More silence. Then a click. She took me off speaker.
    via Ok_Algang
  • She came to my desk 5 minutes later, hissing: "Are you insane? Everyone heard that!" I smiled. "Now you know how I feel every time you put me on speaker without asking." She hasn't put me on speaker since.
    via Ok_Algang
  • A woman talking over the phone with the coworker. Model portrayal.
    via Taylor Grote

    A woman talking over the phone with the coworker. 

    Model portrayal. 

  • Suspicious_Let_6743 Hahaha put him on speaker full blast
    via Suspicious_Let_6743
  • Blinkandimgone4good Nicely played, but it could land you in troubles with HR.
    via Blinkandimgone4good
  • AmerlrishBanshee70 You 2 sit 3 feet apart from each other and yet you call each other on the phone. I bet your coworkers hate the both of you. Very immature and unprofessional. Get up from your desk, walk 3 feet and talk to each other face-to-face.
    via AmerlrishBanshee70
  • Careless-Ability-748 Why would you call someone who sits 3 feet from you?
    via Careless-Ability-748
  • JayneT70 My office mate, Linda on personal calls constantly. When her older daughter had a baby then the daily FaceTime calls started. Her youngest adult daughter lived with her. They were on the phone constantly with each other. Our supervisor had to be moved to our area for a couple of months to accommodate an employee they gave them his office. He came up to me and complained, wow Linda is on the phone constantly. My response well you're here supervisor you should do something about it. He ne
    via JayneT70
  • Good on you on the way you handled the situation
    via JayneT70
  • dck133 Why are you calling someone who is 3 feet away and who you can hear when she talks at her desk?
    via dck133
  • Rude_Lingonberry3998 lol yes and I call my kids from the other end of the couch and put them on speaker too
    via Rude_Lingonberry3998
  • naughty_bachelor Why are you calling each other sitting just feet away? I'd never consider being so disrespectful. Get off your to each other. and go talk
    via naughty_bachelor
  • skorvia I love it!!
    via skorvia

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employment issues boundaries phone calls speaker
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