The Gemini coworker is mostly a theoretical worker. They like to work in theory rather than in practice because they despise being one thing. I’ll explain more about what I mean by this.

First of all, as an Aries, I fully reject the Gemini slander that is commonplace to pop astrology. I have a great deal of Gemini friends who I love dearly. As an astrologer, I must try my best to offer up a complete picture of the Gemini as a coworker. In this article, I will do my best to try and explain why Geminis are so polarizing, why some of us are such big Gemini fans and why some are such big Gemini haters.

You see, a Gemini coworker is always going to try to help you out. Some of y’all don’t like that.

Why is Gemini up in your business all the time? Why are they always trying to figure out how your job works and what you do? Why are they always listening to you talk whether that is with another coworker or just random mumblings under your breath? Why are their ears so sharp that they can hear every single word that comes out of your mouth while you are having a private conversation in the breakroom while running the microwave?

Because Gemini finds you interesting. No, they’re not trying to compete with you or take your work. They’re just a taster. They want to try out all the jobs to see what they really like and don’t like and also to see if they’re any good at what you do or not. Just for fun.

You’re trying to count out your cash at the end of the day and your Gemini coworker seems to be breathing down your neck, watching your every move. You’re a bit annoyed. What? Do they think that you’re going to take money? No. Gemini is watching you count pennies trying to bite back their tongue. They can’t. No Gemini can hold back their tongue for very long. “Why are you counting everything one by one? You need to count by groups of ten. Basic math, my dude.”

Ouch! Hurts, right? Gemini will cut an ego down in size without a second thought. But you have to admit. It’s a good suggestion.

Gemini has an opinion, not just about the tasks that they happen to be in charge of but about your everyday behaviors. Bring in a bottle of water and Gemini eyes you with skepticism. “No, I’m going to show you a much better water bottle. You can thank me later.” You mention that you’re about to hit up a deli close by for some lunch. “Which deli?” Gemini wants to know. “Oh no, no, no. You’ve been going to the wrong deli. I’m going to send you to a much better deli with nicer bread.”

Yes—Gemini is always trying to help you out. They love being helpful! Accommodating! Sharing their research! And they do love to plan.

You have to keep in mind that the Gemini coworker is simply sharing their opinion about how you should do things. They have no authority over you and they will admit this fact as happily as their every other thought. Why are you being grumpy? If you don’t want to follow their little suggestions, then just say so.

Gemini is not actually trying to make you do anything. They’re not bossy—just opinionated. In fact, they themselves often do not follow their own suggestions. You will notice that Gemini has all kinds of tips for how to work but that they are rarely seen working.

I had a Gemini boss once and it was a gag. He dressed like a hipster but he was not. He was an Ivy League educated lawyer. No matter what the day of the week was, you could not expect him to be present. He hardly ever showed up but, when he was there, he would bring all these random strangers to the workplace—indie musicians, marketing gurus, or just random people who he met somewhere or another—show them around, and then leave immediately with them for the rest of the day. He eventually left because the workplace unionized despite doing his best to shut the union down but, immediately after he left, he also wrote a long form essay about how arts organizations need more unions for a pretty famous left leaning magazine.

There’s a term in Chinese called 画大饼 or draw a big pancake. It refers to someone who is very good at drawing a very big pancake. You can’t eat a drawing of a pancake, even once that looks so convincing that your mouth starts to salivate. Even a drawing of a very big pancake won’t give you any nutritional value.

On the first day of work, Gemini brings all the energy. They’re so good at immersing themselves in a culture and asking great questions. On that first day, they’ve dressed impeccably for the job (in fact, they’re in costume). On the second day on the job, Gemini has begun to look a little weary. They knew that going to work means that they have to show up not just one day but every single fucking day but their body didn’t. By day three, Gemini is already looking ahead in their calendar to see when they can safely take a week off or figuring out how they can change jobs.

I know that Geminis often get a bad rap but most of anything that makes the Gemini coworker even slightly annoying is actually all very relatable. Who the hell wants to come to work every single day? TO do the same thing every single day?

The Gemini coworker, however, is excellent at planning. They excel at the art of drawing up schemes or designs. They’re great poker players and, yes, they do think of the role that they have been assigned at work as mostly a performance—an act.

You’re planning a project with your Gemini coworker. Oh boy do they have energy! In fact, you’re pleasantly surprised to learn that you don’t have to do much at all. They’ve got this. They’re figuring out what to do with your budget, who to schedule meetings with, and the overall timeline on a sheet of poster board the size of your torso. You feel like you’re just along for the ride and happily cackling away at the jokes that your Gemini coworker makes every now and then. Isn’t it nice to work with someone so diligent?

Once the planning phase is finished, however, you realize something quite crucial. All of those tasks that Gemini planned for someone to do on that ridiculously big piece of poster board? Oh, they weren’t planning to do all that. Their work is complete. All you have to do now is simply complete the tasks that they’ve been so generous as to plan ahead of time for you. Aren’t you glad?

To the Gemini coworker, the planning is most of the work. They did all that so that you can just relax and get it done. The hard part of the process, the thinking part, has been completed for you. Why are you worried?

Gemini is right. Planning actually is hard work and Gemini is by no means a lazy sign. The Gemini coworker doesn’t want to sit down and get tasks down in a way that makes sense because they simply can’t stand to be contained to one single process or role. That’s when work starts to keep like a script that they can’t take off. Gemini would much rather play all of the parts. They love to plan because planning entails pretending to wear a bunch of different hats.

The Gemini coworker has a point. We do need variety in our lives. How fun would a workplace be if, instead of getting designated roles, we just tried all the jobs in rotation for a change? Wouldn’t that promote better empathy and functionality? When work becomes just one role, work also becomes a performance. Why should we go in wearing our work clothes and we sit or stand somewhere performing individual “work tasks” in isolation? Doesn’t that feel more like satire than real life?

Gemini hates getting pigeonholed. They want to try everything. They want to figure out how the whole system works and they want to plan collaboratively. If they must stick to one role, then they will behave as though the workplace is only a theater. They will make a mockery out of what you think they are there to do.