A Mini-Vow from last week, “A Secret Crush Goes Public in a Work Meeting,” stirred conversation on social media about work crushes. The story was about a lawyer at Google who pinned her secret work crush to her screen during virtual meetings to stay engaged. (A “pin” is a feature on video calls that allows participants to watch a specific speaker — an important distinction, since several readers thought she printed a photo of him and physically taped the copy to her laptop.) One day, a colleague saw a reflection of her laptop and asked, “Why do you have Jake pinned to your screen?” More than 1,000 people commented on Facebook with their own stories and thoughts on crushes on-the-job. Some highlights below, edited for space.
This reminds me of my daughter who started kindergarten during the pandemic and consequently started school remotely. One day, during class, I noticed that she had one of her classmates pinned to her screen so that he was big while all her other classmates, and her teacher, were just tiny postage stamps in the background. “Who’s that and why did you pin him to your screen?” I asked my 5 year old. “That’s Evan,” she told me. “He’s cute.” They had never met in person.
Amber McPherson, Portland, Ore.
I met my husband at work. Ten years of slow burn later, we finally got our act together. Sometimes it takes awhile.
Katherine Hannauer, New York
I met my husband Ron Magas at work years ago when we worked for NPR. We spent hours working in the radio booth together, and I remember thinking at the time, “Gee, he smells so good!” We became friends and saw each other sporadically the next five years, finally went on one date, and booked a church for our wedding within three months. Two kids and 20-something years later, he still smells as good as the day I first met him!
Jennifer Lee, Lake Worth, Fla.
Cute story, I’m glad they didn’t act on their feelings for one another until after they stopped working together. Those workplace romances can be quite tricky.
Amy Sander Kaeuper, Nutley, N.J.
I worked in the cosmetic department and my work crush was a buyer at a major department store. Called him my “escalator crush” because I could see him come down from the offices from our department. Married 33 years this past March.
Patricia Flickinger Stauffer, York, Pa.
It has to just be crazy hard to meet people after college, especially when you’re not supposed to date co-workers where you spend the vast majority of waking hours. Glad this worked out and appreciate a feel-good story.
Marcey Jo Tidwell, Bloomington, Ind.
I’m so glad this story is what it is. I thought it was going to be one of those inappropriate behavior things where someone gets fired.
Joe Murphy, Quincy, Mass.
Met my wife at our first nursing job. She sat behind me during orientation. We worked on the same unit, she was day shift and I was night shift. We hit it off and soon, found out both our parents used to work with each other and the chances of running into each other as kids was very likely. We currently have two kids. We feel it was meant to be.
Alan Phan, Whittier, Calif.
At that point I would have to leave the country and change my identity.
Dina Johnson Rogers, Richardson, Texas.
I taught online middle school and had a software that showed the students’ screens. They often pinned their crushes. My favorite was the one boy who started working hard to impress the girl who was the smartest in our class.
Patricia Bryant, Phoenix
I also met my husband at work. I thought he was so cute that I remember the second I saw him and our eyes met, what I said to him, and even what I was wearing that day — clearly before social media. We’ve been married 26 years.
Susan Biermann Belej, Aberdeen, N.J.
