Ask a Manager

Here are three more reader updates. The subject line for each links back to the person’s original post.

1. The reader whose boss was monitoring his computer usage

I ended up requesting a meeting with my boss to talk about it. He said that he had noticed a drop in my productivity, and other employees were complaining about me being on gaming websites. He said it wasn’t his intention to monitor the computer, then fire me, but to use it more as a basis for a discussion about my performance. Since that meeting, I have been the model employee, my performance is back up to normal, and I have been coming in early and staying late in order to get my work done faster.

2. The reader wondering how to tell her new company she planned to go to grad school (question #4 at the link)

Your and your readers’ comments were quite helpful. My update isn’t very exciting, but I’ve been here for almost 8 months and turns out that the degree I want to get is totally in line with the company’s goals and future — even though I might leave for grad school, the skills I’m building up along the way in preparation for my application are very useful for my job. Working around my post-bac/evening class schedule has been pretty easy. And, shortly after writing you, I found out there’s another person here who’s headed to grad school in the very near future and is quite open about it. I realize now that I was worried about it before because my previous job was pretty strict about when people got there and left, and my boss was really into micromanaging and generally being in my personal business. Much better now!

P.S. As I was writing this, you posted your article about rethinking grad school. I decided to look for work after college instead of going straight to grad school, even though I knew what I wanted to study. Guess what? I didn’t, and I’m so happy I have a) work experience b) a clearer idea of what I want to do, and c) bigger savings. Oh, and I’m not a miserable law student getting a degree I don’t really want- hooray!)

3. The reader wondering if she should give up on her dream of being a librarian

After some incredible luck, I landed my dream job, which I’m about to start in a few weeks! It all started about a year ago when I interviewed for a job at a place affiliated with my dream institution. I felt like I had a great interview, so I was crushed when I didn’t get that job. The interviewers were nice enough to ask if I’d like my resume sent on to some of their colleagues at my dream institution. (Of course I thanked them profusely and said yes.) About 6 months after that, I got a call from my dream institution asking if I’d be interested in a temporary position, and from there I was able to get my foot in the door and make some great connections. I’ve done a few different temporary jobs for them, and recently got a job doing exactly what I want to be doing in the field. This is way beyond anything I could have hoped for a year ago, when I was searching for anything in librarianship. Thank you so much for posting my original question and thanks to all of the readers who commented; this really helped me to keep up my spirits and keep searching!