intern signs emails with “stay gold,” can I wear black jeans to a job interview, and more by Alison Green on February 26, 2020 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Intern uses “stay gold” as her email sign off There’s an intern at my office who signs off all her emails with “Stay gold.” For example, an email from her might read, “Thanks for sending me the TPS reports! Stay gold, Jane.” I asked her […] Read the full article →
a recruiter used my dad’s death to try to get me to accept a job offer by Alison Green on February 25, 2020 A reader writes: I was contacted by a recruiter about a job opening in my field. I wasn’t actively looking to leave my current position, but the new role would be a step up in responsibility and one that wasn’t available at my current company. I made it to the final round of interviews and […] Read the full article →
what should a resignation letter say? by Alison Green on February 25, 2020 What exactly are the mechanics of quitting your job? How do you tell your boss? How do you initiate that meeting? What do you write in your resignation letter? And for that matter, considering that it’s 2020, why are we still marking this important conversation by letter? Here’s everything you need to know about resignation […] Read the full article →
can I put running my household on my resume? by Alison Green on February 25, 2020 A reader writes: I’m looking to move out of arts/media, where I’m currently director of a small department, and into business operations, probably looking for director of operations and similar jobs. I’m part of a three-adult-one-child family and act as family CFO/COO/HR, and I’d like to reference that experience when I’m applying for jobs. We […] Read the full article →
my team keeps working unauthorized overtime, office lighting wars, and more by Alison Green on February 25, 2020 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My staff keeps working unauthorized overtime even though I told them to stop In my line of work, I oversee all the staff I used to be “teammates” with. I understand this can be a hard transition, but it’s been over a year and the […] Read the full article →
what’s up with people responding to emails with a phone call? by Alison Green on February 24, 2020 A reader writes: What’s the etiquette on responding to people who you have emailed and they respond with a phone call? I understand there are times when a phone call is necessary. I’ve been getting dozens of phone calls (after sending out a ton of emails on a certain work issue) and they all ask […] Read the full article →
what kind of loyalty do you owe your employer? by Alison Green on February 24, 2020 An unsettling number of people are confused about what kind of loyalty they owe their employers. I regularly receive letters from people asking whether it would be disloyal for them to look for a new job (as if their company is a romantic partner they’d be cheating on) … from people who feel guilty about leaving […] Read the full article →
my coworker lied about having a terminal illness — and we donated money to her by Alison Green on February 24, 2020 A reader writes: A few years back, I had a coworker, “Jane,” who told everyone she was suffering from a terminal illness. She missed a lot of work, but HR and the managers were really kind to her in making sure they accommodated her needs (she was getting treatments and also experienced pain/fatigue from her […] Read the full article →
my coworker puts on a show of being busy when she’s not, invasive client, and more by Alison Green on February 24, 2020 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My coworker puts on a show of being busy — but it’s not required I supervise the day-to-day tasks of and serve as a resource for a coworker, but we share a boss. I used to complete their tasks, so I have a pretty good […] Read the full article →
weekend free-for-all – February 22-23, 2020 by Alison Green on February 22, 2020 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.) Book recommendation of the week: My Latest Grievance, by Elinor Lipman. I’m on an Elinor Lipman kick. This one is about a teenager raised on a college campus where […] Read the full article →