how can I stop being so helpful to coworkers? by Alison Green on January 31, 2017 A reader writes: I really need help putting some feedback my boss has given me into practice. This isn’t once-off feedback — it’s ongoing feedback over a period of months. I understand and agree with the reasons, I want to do it, and I know that it’s affecting my employment prospects. I just struggle to […] Read the full article →
my incredibly mean coworker has cancer by Alison Green on January 31, 2017 A reader writes: I have a colleague, “Briana,” who is a truly awful person to work with. While we are based in different cities, I recently took the lead on an important project that involves her location and requires her direct input. If successful, this project could directly benefit her financially. But instead of being […] Read the full article →
how much time can I take off when a pet dies? by Alison Green on January 31, 2017 A reader writes: I am a pet lover and pet owner; I have a cat and two dogs who my husband and I love as if they were our own children. We’ve recently had to have a lot of hard discussions due to the fact that our 11-year-old cat is sick and treatments are not […] Read the full article →
company refuses to let us come in with minor colds, coworker sends reminders about emails right after they’re sent, and more by Alison Green on January 31, 2017 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My company refuses to let us come in sick, even with minor colds I graduated from college last year and started a full-time job in December. Last week I came down with a bit of a cold, but I wasn’t feeling too terrible so I […] Read the full article →
my chatty coworker won’t stop talking to me and panics when managers see us talking by Alison Green on January 30, 2017 A reader writes: I have sort of a weird situation. I’ve been working at my job for around 15 years and the first 6 years or so had a coworker I’ll call Jane. Jane was very good at her job and was well regarded. She accepted an transfer to our factory but went through a […] Read the full article →
everything you need to know about job references by Alison Green on January 30, 2017 When an interviewer asks you for a list of references, are you confident about the names you hand over? Do you wonder what kind of questions they might be asked, or whether you’ve picked the right people? Are you supposed to list your current manager, or is it okay not to? Here’s a quick run-down […] Read the full article →
my boss enlists me in hiding his multiple affairs from his wife by Alison Green on January 30, 2017 A reader writes: My boss is having multiple affairs. I am his assistant, so I know about all his visitors and his schedule. He is married, but he often has visits from two different women, and he outright told me to never tell his wife about them. When either of them visit, he locks his […] Read the full article →
coworker is never in the office, job postings for “energetic” candidates, and more by Alison Green on January 30, 2017 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My coworker is never in the office and people ask me about her I started working at a new company on a small team of close-knit colleagues a few months ago. Everyone has known each other and worked with each other for over a decade […] Read the full article →
weekend free-for-all – January 28-29, 2017 by Alison Green on January 28, 2017 This comment section is open for any non-work-related discussion you’d like to have with other readers, by popular demand. (This one is truly no work and no school. If you have a work question, you can email it to me or post it in the work-related open thread on Fridays.) Recommendation of the week: Unmentionable: The […] Read the full article →
my boss may be insinuating I was fired by Alison Green on January 27, 2017 A reader writes: I recently accepted a job in a different division of my company, and so I resigned my current position with a decent amount of notice, at a time when our department is going through substantial transition (both supervisor and super’s supervisor got promotions out). Supervisor and boss are only allowing me to […] Read the full article →