The office housework
nobody warns you about.

There is a piece of career advice that many women do not hear until they are years into their careers.

When you start your first job, you want to make a good impression. You are enthusiastic, keen to learn and grateful for the opportunity. Naturally, you put your hand up when someone asks for help.

“Can you organise the birthday collection?”

“Would you mind making the tea?”

“Could you arrange the leaving card?”

“Can you take the meeting notes?”

At first, none of these requests seems like a big deal. In fact, saying yes feels like being a good team player.

The problem is not doing these things occasionally. The problem is becoming the person who always does them.

What is office housework?

Office housework is the work that keeps an office running but rarely appears in a job description.

• Organising birthday collections.
• Planning the Christmas party.
• Buying cakes for celebrations.
• Ordering office supplies.
• Making tea and coffee.
• Taking meeting notes every time.
• Booking meeting rooms.
• Chasing RSVPs.
• Decorating the office for events.

These tasks are important, but they are also largely invisible when promotion decisions are being made.

Nobody gets promoted because they organised the best Secret Santa.

Why women often end up doing it

Research has shown that women are often asked, or expected, to take on these tasks more frequently than men.

Sometimes it is because people assume women are more organised. Sometimes it is because we worry that saying no will make us look difficult. Sometimes we volunteer because we genuinely want to help.

Before long, it becomes part of our unofficial role.

Here is the real cost

Every hour spent organising cakes is an hour you are not:

• Learning a new AML system.
• Shadowing an investigation.
• Writing part of a report.
• Presenting in a meeting.
• Building relationships with senior stakeholders.
• Developing technical expertise.

Those are the experiences that build careers. Office housework usually does not.

Be known for the right things

If you are looking for opportunities to put your hand up, choose the ones that help you grow.

Volunteer to:

• Lead part of a meeting.
• Analyse a new data set.
• Help with a complex investigation.
• Present your findings.
• Learn a new process.
• Join a client or regulator meeting.
• Support a project outside your comfort zone.

These experiences build confidence, credibility and capability.

But is helping not part of being a good colleague?

Absolutely. This article is not encouraging anyone to stop being kind.

If everyone takes turns making the coffee or organising a birthday collection, that is teamwork.

The issue is when the same people, often junior women, quietly become responsible for all of the office housework while others gain the experiences that lead to promotions.

That is not teamwork. That is an imbalance.

Learn to pause before saying yes

The next time someone asks for help, ask yourself one simple question:

Will this help me build the career I want?

Sometimes the answer will be yes. Sometimes the answer will be no.

If it is no, it is perfectly acceptable to politely decline or suggest sharing the task around the team.

Final thoughts

Your employer hired you because of your skills, your judgement and your potential.

Be known for your ideas.

Be known for your professionalism.

Be known for solving problems.

Be known for learning.

And every now and then, if it is your turn, make the coffee.

Just do not let that become what you are known for.