Personally, if any of my employees did that I wouldn't care unless it became a problem somehow.

It can be distracting, but as long as the guy is doing his work, I wouldn't have a problem with it. Choose your battles!

Ultimately, I suppose it is the bosses decision.

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Excessive. Unless he works for Hasbro.

It's probably a Mattel employee dreaming of making real figures, hehe.

I have a ton of stuff at my t-shirt shop, but then it's just me and my brother there. I wouldn't have much if I worked in an office space like that. I wouldn't feel it would be the thing to do, plus I'd be too afraid someone would mess up or steal my stuff.

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Used to have an MSiA Gundam Heavyarms in my office. It got stolen. I don't keep toys in my office now.

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When I was working in Sales, I had my cubicle full of toys. I did my work and was a major contributor so, no one disliked it. My boss would walk by and laugh..but that's the kind of office we had. We had fun.

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In my opinion, having stuff like that in your workspace is a bad career move. Overcrowding your cube with anything (be it toys, troll dolls, plants, or even personal pictures) is also unwise. You can make all the arguments you want over personal expression, free will, blah, blah, blah. But, your bosses make decisions about you as a person based on what they know. When the time comes for promotion, advancement, raises, etc., they weigh all those factors...not just your work output. As such, things like this can be a severe career impediment. Having one or two figures on your desk might not be harmful. But, it depends upon your boss, their perception of you and their perception of your hobbies and decorating tastes. It may not be fair, but that's how it is in the corporate world.

As an example, I worked with a Claims Examiner who was about the best in town at her job. No opposing counsel wanted to deal with her because she was so good. But, here cube was a mishmash of stuffed animals and other crap. As such, she was percieved in her office as someone who was not able to lead and who didn't have it fully together. So, she never got promoted even though she was very good. (But, at my current job, the VP of Operations' office is full of stuffed frogs and it hasn't hurt her career, so it does heavily depend upon the people with whom you work.)

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Unfortunatly this is true, the aforementioned Hellboy poster led to alot of problems later I believe, of course changing bosses from a nice, expressive, caring one to a grumbly, bulling, bad natured boss did more than anything.

I would also agree that that is a bit excessive. Having a figure or so may be ok, but covering your entire workspace in it isn't really professional looking. I imagine if someone were doing a tour of the spaces for a potential investor, VIP, or general manager-type would have that stick out in their mind instead of what they were supposed to be concentrating on; also as already stated, it could be a very bad career move to be known as "that guy" whether you are displaying Joes, animals, dolls, or anything else.

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While I'm typically the first one to "buck the system" for some individuality, I feel that is a tad excessive.

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I think if I worked in a more laid back environment, I might have one figure or a Hot Wheels car just to have something to physically manipulate during those times where you need a minute to gather your thoughts. But I am definately not a fan of people who turn their office space into an extension of their home. Now if I worked in an industry such as graphic design or related field, maybe it's okay to have a little personal expression. My rule of thumb is if I got fired or laid off today, could I clear my space out in 2 mins? Right now, I have my snack bars, a jug of protein, and a mug

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I subscribe to the same train of thought, so much so in my drawer I have a short two-weeks notice letter composed with the dates missing and an updated resume. Not that I hate my job or anything (some days I do) or that i'm paranoid about being let go, but someone once told me to do that. Also keep a folder/portoflio of all that i've accomplished - if i have to go that's all i need to grab.

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That display is probably a BIT excessive. Having said that, whoever complained is a jerk, and probably a major kiss-boss. And I really don't see how they're detrimental to the workplace. Probably someone else in the office has enough plants to stage their own Jungle Cruise. Everybody has a hobby and most everyone likes to show it off to some degree.

Fortunately, not everyone is like whoever the fink was in this. My own personal case in point. Although I work freelance and generally st home, I do volunteer 1-2 days a week at my church's office. My usual workstation is a computer that is in the main workroom that also has the copiers and office supplies. It's a nice big open space.

The staff there has gotten sufficiently used to me and my hobbies that they'd honestly be disappointed if I DIDN'T bring in a few figures with me. I never leave any of them there. But I try to be reasonable about it. I generally don't take in anyone who's over 7" in height, and no more than eight (loose) figures at a time. Might be G.I.Joe, Star Wars, Gundam, Power Rangers, Indiana Jones, or whomever.

Fortunately, most of the people around there know that there's a standing rule about them -- DON'T TOUCH THE FIGURES!

There's a practical side to it, as well. The lighting in the office is much better than anywhere in my apartment, so any new acquisitions of mine go there automatically for a little visual inspection to see if there's any paint defects or such that need my attention.

The figures do not detract from my work, do not take up a lot of space, and no one's ever complained.

My biggest concern with a display of the size shown in the picture with this article is I would be VERY reluctant to leave something that considerable AT the office. Anything from fire to theft could be a threat to them.

The funny thing is, sports memorabilia is probably more widely accepted.

I see no difference between a sports fan having memorablia and a Joe fan having his own stuff. I don't think the majority of office folk would agree with that.

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Excessive is excessive no matter what. Some people have jersey's or balls or pennants in their office but not too many have all of that.

Some people have pictures of golf courses and the like but never the mini putting green in their office.

I've seen the gammit of odd collectables in work spaces and the ones who keep a limit to how much those collectables intrude into their work space are the ones who have longevity at the work place.


If you work for a major corporation you don't get to touch anything in your office if you are let go. Security will escort you to your office for only your necessary personal belongings (ie wallet, coat, purse). Everything else is already boxed up and will be mailed to you. Your computer, work files, etc. will already be gone. It is cold, it is calculated, and it will most likely happen at the end of the work day on Friday. So no one will notice you're gone.

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you guys should see some of the "geeks" at Lucasfilm's cubicles, talk about excessive. But then again, that's probably encouraged there.