should I mention future plans for a family when interviewing? by Alison Green on April 7, 2014 A reader writes: I could use a hiring manager’s eye on my answer to “Where do you see yourself in five years?” Honestly, once my student loans are paid off and my husband and I buy a house, I think I am going to try to drop to part time or quit work entirely and […] Read the full article →
my old manager won’t hire someone to replace me, is my manager undermining me, and more by Alison Green on April 7, 2014 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My old manager won’t hire someone to replace me I have been very lucky to get a great job in a different department at my current company. Right now, I am in the transition period where I am still working in my old department and […] Read the full article →
managing an unmotivated staff, getting out of office lunches, and more by Alison Green on April 5, 2014 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My staff is unfocused and unmotivated — what can I do? I’m a project manager for a team of engineers that builds websites, and I’m struggling with motivating my people. I consider myself a soft-skills and people-minded manager who is very aware of the common […] Read the full article →
I’m anxious about leaving my bad job for a better one by Alison Green on April 4, 2014 This was originally published on August 7, 2012. A reader writes: I don’t know if this is normal or not, but I’m having some workplace separation anxiety! Here’s the situation: I have been desperate to leave my job for some time now. I haven’t been happy here, I’m always frustrated, I disagree with the structure (or […] Read the full article →
open thread – April 4, 2014 by Alison Green on April 4, 2014 It’s the Friday open thread! The comment section on this post is open for discussion with other readers on anything you want to talk about. If you want an answer from me, emailing me is still your best bet, but this is a chance to talk to other readers. Read the full article →
should I tell my employer if I file for bankruptcy, using speaker phone during a phone interview, and more by Alison Green on April 4, 2014 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Should I tell my employer if I file for bankruptcy? I am a relatively new hire at a law firm. I am seriously considering filing for bankruptcy due to a large amount of medical debt, as well as a much smaller amount of non-medical debt […] Read the full article →
my manager wants to be cc’d on all my emails by Alison Green on April 3, 2014 A reader writes: My manager asks me to copy him on almost any email correspondence I mention to him. (So much so that I avoid mentioning I’m contacting someone; instead I try to report outcomes, not processes.) We’re in a field (maybe this is all fields) where it’s common practice to call colleagues to ask […] Read the full article →
employer scheduled an interview with me — but just assigned me a date and time without asking about my schedule by Alison Green on April 3, 2014 A reader writes: I had applied for a job with a state government about 2-3 months ago online and hadn’t heard any response back from them since then. In fact, I had forgotten that I had applied. However, I heard back this morning with an email stating that an interview has been scheduled for next […] Read the full article →
the 10 worst coworkers of all time by Alison Green on April 3, 2014 We read a lot of questions here about weird or annoying coworkers. But some people cross the line from annoying into truly terrible. At Intuit QuickBase’s Fast Track blog today, I take a look back at 10 of the worst coworkers that we’ve heard about here — including last month’s charity hoaxer, the person who […] Read the full article →
my employer wants me to stay in hotels that feel unsafe, being told to repay $3.91 for expensing aspirin, and more by Alison Green on April 3, 2014 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My wife has to repay for $3.91 for expensing aspirin on a business trip I’m asking this question on behalf of my wife. Because she travels for work, she was issued a company credit card for food, hotels, flights, and other miscellaneous expenses. On a […] Read the full article →