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I am a software developer, and recently joined a new company. Five of us, including my boss, work in a small office.

My boss plays music very loudly while he works — the kind you hear in nightclubs — which is not conducive to a work environment where concentration is needed. The "music" is severely affecting my concentration and productivity. At my past jobs, developers would use their own headsets to listen to what they want without bothering others.

Should I take this up with my boss and if so, how should I do it?

Lilienthal
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RunLoop
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    Put your own headphones on – AMB May 16 '17 at 14:01
  • The issue is I prefer relative quiet, so putting on my own headphones would be of minor help. – RunLoop May 16 '17 at 14:02
  • If you work with others in a small place i think this is the only thing you can do – AMB May 16 '17 at 14:03
  • What do your coworkers think about the noise level? – Philip Kendall May 16 '17 at 14:03
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    Maybe use noise cancelling headphones? They work great on engine noise. I don't know how well they'd do with music. – Dan Pichelman May 16 '17 at 14:04
  • They all have headphones, but I suspect this may be to drown out the generated noise. – RunLoop May 16 '17 at 14:05
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    Noise cancelling headphones, by themselves, are surprisingly effective. You might not drown out everything (bass is hard to filter), but it can make it much better. I bought some in a noisy office, and often just switched them on and wore them with no source. – The Wandering Dev Manager May 16 '17 at 14:09
  • I made a few edits to streamline the question and retitled this but I'm not happy about the title. OP (or anyone else of course): please consider [edit]ing it again if you can word this better. Titles should be descriptive but I'm not sure which of the questions I identified should be in the title as you may want to clarify what your core goal is: getting the boss to use headphones, lowering the volume or changing the type of music, moving to another office, ... – Lilienthal May 16 '17 at 14:19
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    "the kind you hear in nightclubs which doesn't seem appropriate", many people including me get in the flow (zone) better on rhythmic repetitive music. The boss needs to get a good pair of cans. – mtone May 16 '17 at 14:39
  • @DanPichelman Noise Cancelling Headphones work great on lower frequencies, that's why they work well with plane engines, but you can still have a conversation with them. I don't think it'd block enough of the music being played in OP's office. – BlindSp0t May 16 '17 at 16:10
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    https://simplynoise.com/ or https://rain.simplynoise.com/ are also very effective (and cheaper than noise cancelling headphones). The combination will be even better (but try talking to your boss first). – Martin Bonner supports Monica May 16 '17 at 16:57
  • Just wondering, why did you rollback the edits? – Masked Man May 16 '17 at 17:07
  • I use a pair of musician's earplugs when I'm not wearing my own headset to keep my personal issues at rest while I work with others. That and talking to people ("Hey boss...") should do you some good. (Also, the buds I have are a whopping $25, and they're wonnnnderful) – SliderBlackrose May 17 '17 at 17:40
  • @RunLoop Can you please explain why you rolled back the edit again? – Masked Man Aug 04 '17 at 06:13
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    Please do not roll back good edits without an equally good reason. – Lilienthal Aug 04 '17 at 09:06
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    To the people suggesting headphones or noise-cancelling headphones: More noise is not an answer to noise, nor should you go into expense to get some peace and quiet in the office. Programming requires concentration and it's in the best interests of the business to provide quiet working conditions. Quiet. I've had this argument way too many times. – rath Aug 04 '17 at 09:32

2 Answers2

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Why not just ask the boss? Maybe he doesn't realize that his music is too loud for the others. Don't assume that just because he is a boss, he is necessarily a jerk. Before using earplugs, headphones and other passive aggressive ideas, just try asking.

Boss, would you mind lowering the volume?

Don't make a public spectacle of it, don't start by complaining that it is bothering you. Just ask. If he insists to know why, you could tell him the music is so good that you are paying more attention to the music than to your work. :-)

The problem with passive aggressive ideas like earplugs and headphones is this:

Boss: I noticed that all of you use earplugs or headphones when I am around. Is that because my music was too loud? Why didn't you just tell me?

Masked Man
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  • Why didn't you just tell me Because it's the done thing not to disturb your colleagues but since you outrank me I thought I'd keep my mouth shut. That's one surprisingly astute boss in your example by the way, people who are so obnoxious as to use speakers for their music don't notice or care about others in their vicinity, and even if they do see them wearing headphones, they would probably think problem solved – rath Aug 04 '17 at 09:35
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    @rath Not sure what kind of bosses you have worked with, but in my part of the world, you cannot become a manager until you can demonstrate a certain level of finesse. If your boss is a jerk, then of course, this solution doesn't work, but loud music is likely to be the least of your concerns in that case. – Masked Man Aug 04 '17 at 09:54
  • Not sure what kind of bosses you have worked with Granted, the boss I have in mind did not display finesse in that way, but I'm happy to learn he was probably an outlier. (it was actually another colleague who played music, the boss who was in the same room just looked the other way every time him and I had "that" fight) – rath Aug 04 '17 at 10:32
  • @rath Oh, that's unfortunate. You are right, in that case, my solution won't work, and a slightly more passive aggressive approach might be required. – Masked Man Aug 04 '17 at 10:39
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Ear plugs would send a signal, and help a little bit with your own concentration.

If the manager gets confused about the earplugs, he probably engages the exact conversation you want to have. Then just be honest, and say the music is bothering you right now, and you need some quiet - so you brought earplugs. So it's fine if you all enjoy music at the office, but sometimes I don't - but it's okay, since I've found a fix for this issue myself, which doesn't ruin the office environment you enjoy.

Jonas Praem
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  • I like your suggestion, though it could be considered quite rude. – RunLoop May 16 '17 at 14:05
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    @RunLoop How would earplugs be rude, while the headphones of your colleagues are not? – skymningen May 16 '17 at 14:06
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    Earplugs says I don't want to hear your **** whilst headphones says I want to listen to my own ****. – RunLoop May 16 '17 at 14:07
  • I would recommend this for a short period of time. If nothing changes, your boss can't take a hint and you would probably need to take the talk. – Jonas Praem May 16 '17 at 14:09
  • If you're going to submit this as an answer you should at least address how OP should respond when his manager asks the inevitable question: "What are you doing?". – Lilienthal May 16 '17 at 14:16
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    The answer to that, is simply: I just don't want to get distracted. just be honest? - now that the manager engaged that interaction – Jonas Praem May 16 '17 at 14:18
  • So why shouldn't OP try to address the issue with his manager directly instead of pulling a stun like this which will have the same effect with the bonus of making the OP look like the unprofessional one? – Lilienthal May 16 '17 at 14:20
  • Because earplugs kinda does this: "it's fine you are blasting music, but it's bothering me, and forcing me to insert earplugs." – Jonas Praem May 16 '17 at 14:21
  • editted with an explanation of the confrontation – Jonas Praem May 16 '17 at 14:26
  • Why go for the indirect approach? The boss is presumably a professional and can deal with the fact that an employee wants quiet when he works. – ayrton clark May 16 '17 at 16:10
  • The indirect approach is meant as an alternative for OP. I felt since he asked here, he wasn't comfortable engaging that conversation. - therefore this is a method which helps him taking that engagement – Jonas Praem May 16 '17 at 16:36