When you’re working in a physical location with other people, you tend to spend more time with your co-workers than you do your own family and friends outside of your job.
And as a result, you learn a lot about them. Their aspirations, childhoods, likes, dislikes, and overall behavior.
And sometimes, that behavior can be a little weird, because when folks are cooped up in the same place for several hours, they try to find ways to keep themselves entertained instead of staring at the clock and waiting for closing time to finally arrive.
And a TikToker who goes by bhadbarista (@jorlala) posted a viral clip highlighting this workplace relationship dynamic in which she features a type of co-worker that many folks in the comments section either know very well, or identify with themselves.
@jorlala hahaha i dont even remember making this #baristalife #baristatok #coworkersbelike #coworkerfun #coworkerbesties #worklife #baristaproblems ♬ original sound – cici
The “bhadbarista” writes in a text overlay of their video: “pov: working with that one coworker who’s always doing something random”
They record themselves lip-syncing someone else’ voice asking, “what? what?” as they look at something off-camera that appears to concern them. The camera then pans to a co-worker wearing a mask flailing their arms around like pool noodles and shuffling forward. The clip then cuts back to the bhadbarista lip-syncing someone else’s laugh followed by a shrug and them saying, “OK.”
She adds in a caption for the clip: “hahaha i dont even remember making this”
A number of viewers expressed in the comments section that they not only sympathized with this workplace reality bhadbarista references in her clip, but that they are the co-worker “always doing something random”
Like this one individual who simply penned: “i am that coworker”
Another one got into the specifics of what their “random” behavior was: “if i’m not dancing, i’m making a random noise”
For another TikToker, this kind of erratic, fun-on-the-fly was their way of making the most out of a situation they’d rather not be in: “I’ve gotta boogie and get down a little in order to survive my shifts”
And there was someone else who said that they are a big fan of the types of co-workers who engage in these kind of off-the-wall work side activities: “I like these kind of coworkers”
There are some companies that have expounded upon the numerous benefits employees can enjoy while dancing at work, however, they don’t necessarily need to be framed as team-building exercises, or structured dance sessions in order for employees to reap the mental benefits of having fun while they get their job done. The Mind-It blog has claimed that folks who dance on the job enjoy health benefits, as the bit of cardiovascular activity not only gets their blood flowing, but can help with reducing back pain that can arise from being seated for long periods of time.
The article goes on to say that at-work dancers can enjoy mitigated stress levels, confidence boosts, and “improved brain power,” which is linked to physical activity and the subsequent improved circulation that occurs in individuals who engage in dance routines on their shifts.
And then there’s the scientific research into the importance of “fun” for human minds: By committing to having fun while performing a task, whatever that fun may look like or be, humans tend to stick their tasks for longer periods of time, as they are actively engaging their minds in simultaneously tackling the project at hand, but not focusing on the result so much as the enjoyment that they can glean from performing it from moment to moment.
So in this instance, a barista two-stepping their way to the caramel pump station and acting like one of the inflatable advertisement dolls outside of a used car dealership might make help them pass the time at their shift a bit more easily.
As the saying goes: Time flies when you’re having fun.
The Daily Dot has reached out to bhadbarista via TikTok comment for further information.
