requiring people to be on time, advance warning of layoffs, and more by Alison Green on March 12, 2016 It’s four answers to four questions. Here we go… 1. Requiring people to be on time when the rest of the organization isn’t My new (10 months on the job) executive director does not seem to care one iota if people stroll in late to work in the morning. Even our front desk receptionst staff […] Read the full article →
update: how can I move from retail into a professional career? by Alison Green on March 11, 2016 Remember the letter-writer in December who was having trouble moving from retail into a professional career? Here’s the (great) update. I wrote to you three months ago for advice on trying to move from retail to a more professional job, with only retail and child care experience. I so appreciated your advice, as well as […] Read the full article →
boss pooped in people’s lunch bags and set off small bombs for fun by Alison Green on March 11, 2016 You think your boss is bad? This one poops in people’s lunch bags. Seriously. Also: English apparently would indeed build bombs on company time from lengths of four-inch PVC pipe that he pumped full of acetylene gas … and wired to a battery charger. He would then plant the pipe bomb in an appropriate spot […] Read the full article →
open thread – March 11-12, 2016 by Alison Green on March 11, 2016 It’s the Friday open thread! The comment section on this post is open for discussion with other readers on anything work-related that 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. * If you submitted […] Read the full article →
employer is asking me to do a major project for free, paying for my coworkers’ water, and more by Alison Green on March 11, 2016 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Prospective employer is asking me to do a major project for free I’ve been working in a sales role for a brand represented my company. With full support of my existing employer, I have pitched myself to the brand for a future role. It would […] Read the full article →
update: people think I’m my boss’s assistant — but I’m not by Alison Green on March 10, 2016 Remember the letter-writer last month who was dealing with everyone thinking she was her boss’s assistant because her desk was right in front of his office? To complicate matters, she was the only woman in a large IT department. Here’s the update. Thank you so much for your thoughtful advice, and for the advice of […] Read the full article →
the introvert’s guide to better relationships with coworkers by Alison Green on March 10, 2016 If you, like many introverts, prefer to keep your head down and focus on work and/or find socializing with colleagues to be weirdly draining, it can be frustrating to realize just how important work relationships really are to your success. But there are some relatively painless things that introverts can do to strengthen relationships with colleagues without […] Read the full article →
my boss and I agreed to plan my exit from my job — what should that look like? by Alison Green on March 10, 2016 A reader writes: Yesterday, I had my mid-year review with my boss and during the conversation, she shared that it was obvious how unhappy I was and that no matter how much I demonstrate that my position is overworked, absolutely nothing would come off my plate (in fact, there is a good chance the workload […] Read the full article →
are patterned stockings unprofessional, how to list freelance work on a resume, and more by Alison Green on March 10, 2016 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Are patterned stockings unprofessional? I am at my first professional job after college and have been in this position for about a year and a half. Today when I walked in the lunch room to get some hot water for tea, I heard a guy […] Read the full article →
I dread meetings with a snotty coworker who calls me by the wrong name by Alison Green on March 9, 2016 A reader writes: I am coming up to my two-year anniversary as an apprentice and am struggling with a monthly task my manager has allocated me. As I am learning teapot administration, my manager thought it fit to offer my services to a monthly strategic teapot meeting so that I could have some experience of […] Read the full article →