my boss wants me to take on a new task – and I don’t want to! by Alison Green on September 3, 2019 A reader writes: I started a new job about four months ago in my field, but in an entirely new role. I have been in customer-facing tech support for the past six years, and was extremely excited to have my first non-customer facing role. Now I do mostly technical writing and lots of project-based content […] Read the full article →
my boss has ideas all the time — and I don’t know which ones she’s serious about by Alison Green on September 3, 2019 A reader writes: I have a problem with my boss. She is really good at the substance of what we are doing but has a random approach to management. She is very much an Ideas All The Time person; I am her unofficial deputy and I manage a lot of our department’s planning and all […] Read the full article →
my boss gave me critical feedback without any specifics by Alison Green on August 21, 2019 A reader writes: I was having a difficult conversation with my boss regarding career development when she interjected that someone on another team that I work with, she couldn’t say who, said that I “wasn’t working with enough urgency.” I asked for clarification or a specific example of a project I did not complete on […] Read the full article →
our boss cross-examines us over minor mistakes by Alison Green on August 21, 2019 A reader writes: I was wondering if you had any advice for dealing with a boss who really digs in whenever a mistake is made. It’s not enough to acknowledge responsibility and to promise you won’t make the same mistake again; he wants to know “why” you made the mistake in the first place. Fortunately, […] Read the full article →
my boss lectured me about arriving on time – when I’m working a ton of hours by Alison Green on August 13, 2019 A reader writes: I need help to decide if what has happened at work is going to be my hill to die on (or resign on). I started on at a new company about eight months ago. I originally was excited, as it was a bump in title and responsibilities and would put me more on […] Read the full article →
how can I get my boss to talk to me in person instead of over chat? by Alison Green on July 18, 2019 A reader writes: I work in a small office that has had a pretty liberal remote work and flex hours policy for years, and about one-third of our employees live out of state and are thus permanently remote. Due to this, a lot of communication between employees has historically taken place over the office chat […] Read the full article →
my boss and mentor runs hot and cold with me by Alison Green on July 17, 2019 A reader writes: The person who brought me to my current company is both my mentor and my supervisor. I met him in a networking capacity and developed a mentoring relationship with him long before the company was able to hire me, so we were somewhat close before we even started working together. He’s taught […] Read the full article →
my boss pees in a cup and dumps it in the kitchen sink by Alison Green on July 8, 2019 Warning: This is a really gross letter. A reader writes: What can we do with a boss who urinates in a cup in his office and then dumps it in the kitchen sink even when we (all women) are sitting there eating lunch? We are certain of what is in the cup because it smells, […] Read the full article →
my boss sends scolding emails to all of us — and then tells me I shouldn’t take them personally by Alison Green on July 3, 2019 A reader writes: My boss and grandboss have a habit of sending out group emails to our team of five with vague directives and complaints. Messages are sent to everyone like, “We had a bad week last week and productivity needs to improve,” or “If you’re not producing your expected targets, you should not expect […] Read the full article →
my boss trash-talks all my coworkers by Alison Green on July 2, 2019 A reader writes: For the most part, I love my job and my coworkers about as much as anyone can. I even enjoy working for my current boss! There is one problem, however: she’s really clique-y and kind of a jerk. This is really only a problem with certain people. Our company is very small, […] Read the full article →