December 2017

all of my 2017 book recommendations

All year long, I’ve made a weekly book recommendation when kicking off the weekend open thread. These aren’t work-related books; they’re just books I love and think everyone else should read. Sometimes they’re books that I’m in the middle of reading, and other times they’re just long-standing favorites. Here’s the complete list of what I’ve […]

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open thread – December 15-16, 2017

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 […]

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update: my boss keeps invading my personal space

Remember the letter-writer whose boss kept invading her personal space when they talked? (#2 at the link) Here’s the update. I’m not sure I have a terrific update, but I have learned a lot more about my boss since I wrote to you. I rearranged my desk one Friday after my boss left. Now the […]

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updates: the hypochrondria, the no-sharers, and more

Here are four updates from people whose letters were answered here this year. 1. My employee has hypochondria and is annoying all his coworkers (first update is here) I have another (final) update for you. After I wrote in with my update, things did not get any better. My other employees refused to interact with Ronald unless […]

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my company won’t let spouses attend the holiday party

A reader writes: Can a company require employees to attend the company holiday party without spouses? We start work at 8 a.m. and then will leave at noon to attend the holiday party. Can they really do say we can’t bring spouses? I answer this question — and four others — over at Inc. today, […]

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my boss refused to send a dying coworker flowers, people keep stealing food for meetings, and more

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My manager refused to send a dying coworker flowers I work in a department that does project-based work for other departments in a large, successful company. I’m currently working on a project with another department, and I’m the only person from my lane on the project. […]

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