Reddit Debate Erupts Over Coworker Booking ‘Fake Meetings’ to Block Focus Time
A Reddit post describing a colleague’s calendar habits has sparked a widespread discussion about workplace boundaries, meeting culture, and productivity strategies. Shared on the r/work subreddit by user @pathetic_lineage, the thread details how an employee allegedly scheduled phantom meetings with himself for months to prevent disruptions.
The Original Post: A Manager Gets Involved
According to the original poster (OP), they discovered their coworker had been populating his calendar with meetings that involved no other attendees. The situation escalated when a manager requested more information regarding the coworker’s schedule, prompting Reddit users to debate whether the behavior warranted a formal report or a warning—or if it was a problem at all.
Community Verdict: ‘Genius’ Boundary Setting
The overwhelming consensus among commenters supported the coworker. Many argued that booking time on a calendar is a standard, legitimate method for reserving uninterrupted deep-work sessions.
“He’s using it to work, and so people don’t bother him,” one commenter noted, questioning what was wrong with the practice. Another labeled the strategy “genius,” emphasizing that the employee was not using the time for personal matters but for setting professional boundaries. A third user stated the coworker was “owning [his] calendar” and suggested the real issue might be a workplace culture that fails to respect employees’ schedules.
Common Tactics: ‘Focus Time’ and Calendar Blocking
Numerous commenters shared that they employ identical strategies. Common approaches include:
- Blocking out calendar sections labeled as “focus time”
- Naming blocks after specific projects or tasks
- Reserving most of the workday for solo work, leaving only specific slots open for meetings
One Redditor recounted a week they forgot to block their calendar, resulting in 36 hours of meetings and almost zero progress on other duties. The anecdote underscored a central theme: unnecessary meetings frequently consume hours needed for core responsibilities.
Balancing Collaboration and Deep Work
While most criticized excessive meetings, several acknowledged their necessity for complex problem-solving, decision-making, or consensus-building. A commenter identifying as a former product manager and current program manager proposed a hybrid approach:
- Hold meetings only when live discussion is truly required.
- Use shared documents and task reminders for routine collaboration.
- Cancel the meeting outright if there is nothing substantive to discuss.
To Report or Not to Report?
Commenters were divided on whether the OP should inform management. Some advised warning the coworker so they could prepare if a manager decided to drop into a scheduled session. Others strongly cautioned the OP to stay out of the matter entirely.
Many stressed that the OP lacks full context. As one user pointed out, the coworker might have legitimate meetings mixed in with the blocked time, making it impossible to verify the “fake” nature of every entry.
This article is based on a discussion from Reddit’s r/work community. The original post appeared on The Daily Dot.
