August 2016

I’m being told to let my coworker fail on a $35 million project

A reader writes: I am the technical lead for the design of a $35 million project, which includes responsibility for the quality of our design and ensuring that we meet project schedule and budget parameters; I’m also the project representative to our client and other agencies. As the project architect, I am additionally responsible for […]

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I was laid off but my employer asked me to keep working

A reader writes: I found out last week that I am being laid off from my job. It was the nicest layoff I could have asked for though, despite the circumstance – I saw it coming as my manager and I have been discussing growth opportunities here, but in a company that’s downsizing and only […]

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you can stop stressing out about these job search worries

Job searching is stressful – prepping for interviews, figuring out how to sell yourself while simultaneously having to evaluate whether you even want a particular job or to work with a particularly company, feeling like you’re constantly being judged, and the agonizing wait to hear back from employers. But job seekers often make the experience […]

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employee won’t stop talking about a coworker’s prosthetic limb

A reader writes: I recently applied for and was promoted into a management position. I manage a team of nine people. We are all new to each other, and the team has come together well, except for one issue. Our admin/divisional office manager/support person, “Jane,” has a prothestic limb. “Fergus,” one of the other team […]

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weekend free-for-all – August 13-14, 2016

This comment section is open for any non-work-related discussion you’d like to have with other readers, by popular demand. (This one is truly no work and no school. If you have a work question, you can email it to me or post it in the work-related open thread on Fridays.) Book recommendation of the week: You’ll […]

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how can I get out of our awful Staff Appreciation Day?

A reader writes: How do I get out of our Staff Appreciation Day? Sounds more like Staff Punishment Day to me, with activities including traveling together to an inconvenient location outside our city, a “one-hour bike ride,” mandatory potluck, and ball games. I hate bike riding (I’m in great shape, so it’s not because I […]

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update: my coworker is a Twitter troll

The letter-writer from earlier this week who asked about how to handle her Twitter troll coworker already has an update! Here it is. Thanks so much for publishing my letter, and for your helpful and sage advice. I did end up pointing the tweet to our PR Director. He took it very seriously and my company […]

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