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Where’s the humanness in workplace interface metaphors?
To all the office warriors, this is a short story of your courage and grit, living through the endless mania of metaphors in the digital world, often twisting your senses between pixels and atoms.
The workday had gotten busy for Riya, with a whirlwind of meetings and arduous conversations still ahead. Just when she dived into her next task, her manager slid the white nob on her chair, shaking her focus, and swerving her into a huddle.
‘Hi Riya, could we huddle?’ If you weren’t so tied up, we could’ve had a meeting.’
‘So we’re not meeting?’
‘Of course not. I’m just checking in with you quickly.’
Ah, the illusion of words, Riya thought.
‘By the way, Zen from sales is also joining us. He’s going to explain this new task that’s come up. Do make space, please.’
Riya stared at her calendar. Expectedly, the huddle from her manager left her with more work. Her eyes scanned for white space among the tightly staggered, coloured rectangles of her schedule. ‘When did calendars become paint by numbers? Thought they marked days and events rather than making my entire day an event,’ she murmured.