Ask a Manager

It’s your Friday good news! 1.  “Last year, I was in a very toxic job — my boss was not very good at his job and had constant turnover, and I ended up doing work that was very much not what I wanted to be doing (think taking over the very routine stuff after yet […]

It’s your Friday good news! 1.  “For nine years I worked for a large nonprofit with a good team but a not so good upper management. I moved into a new home slightly further away and started job hunting to make my commute better. Nothing panned out. My manager left, new manager asked me to […]

It’s your Friday good news! Thanks to your posts about how women tend to pass on opportunities that men would pursue, last year I decided to apply for a position that would have been a bit of a stretch. I knew I didn’t have 100% of the experience they were looking for, but I used your cover letter […]

It’s your Friday good news! Capitalism is broken. I am working out my notice period for an exceptionally good employer. My team has a great balance of support and autonomy, the work we do helps people, the schedule is flexible and includes WFH days, our team only hires kind people, and the pay and benefits […]

It’s your Friday good news! 1.  “I wrote you a letter in early 2021 that you didn’t print because it didn’t really contain a question, so much as it was my attempt to figure out how to survive what I feared was a terrible and permanent vibe-shift at my job. (Unfortunately, I was right.) I […]

It’s your Friday good news! 1.  “I don’t remember how I started reading AAM: Probably a link from Captain Awkward. I’ve received so much bizarre and ridiculous advice over the years, and it has been invaluable to have your column to guide me. Reading all of your posts has helped me greatly in advocating for […]

It’s your Friday good news! 1. “I am an ex-academic who has just transitioned into private industry. I had reached a point where my old job was so toxic I felt perpetually poisoned. I was consistently miserable, at work and not, paying thousands for therapy to try to cope, and completely OWNED by the sunk […]

It’s your Friday good news! I’m writing to tell you about my good news and to restate that your site was extremely helpful from soup-to-nuts: recognizing a bad job, seeking out good opportunities, interviewing, and landing an offer. Up ’til early 2022 I’d see AAM posts come up when I’d google certain career-related questions, but […]

It’s your Friday good news! 1.  “I’ve been waiting to send this! I’d been at my last job with basically zero company culture and growth potential for six years and was reading AAM to remind myself what good company culture did look like. Because of your advice, I didn’t get too invested in any one […]

It’s your Friday good news! I wanted to send in a good news update of my own! I am self employed so I never really thought I would have anything applicable. But after reading this letter and her update, I realized I now do! I co-own a business that my partner and I had been […]