open thread – October 6-7, 2023 by Alison Green on October 6, 2023 It’s the Friday open thread! The comment section on this post is open for discussion with other readers on any work-related questions that you want to talk about (that includes school). If you want an answer from me, emailing me is still your best bet*, but this is a chance to take your questions to […] Read the full article →
someone is leaving political messages on our bulletin board, intern thinks my job is to find them tasks, and more by Alison Green on October 6, 2023 It’s four answers to four questions. Here we go… 1. I referred a friend to my company and she’s made far more friends here than I have I love my job and my coworkers, but we aren’t a very social bunch. We’ve been remote since Covid and it is going to remain that way, but […] Read the full article →
did my positive response to negative feedback make my boss worry I missed the point? by Alison Green on October 5, 2023 A reader writes: Last year I started a new job doing exciting work at a great company. Unfortunately, in the first few months several things made my performance crater. I got Covid the weekend before I was supposed to start and struggled with brain fog for months, insurance stopped covering the medication I took for […] Read the full article →
updates: I resuscitated a coworker, my boss only hires attractive women, and more by Alison Green on October 5, 2023 Here are four updates from past letter-writers. 1. I resuscitated a coworker, and people won’t stop talking about it I wrote to you about “Jane,” the coworker who declared we had a “special bond” after I performed CPR and resuscitated her. Thank you for your advice and everything the commentariat had to say. It helped […] Read the full article →
let’s discuss weaponized incompetence by Alison Green on October 5, 2023 Let’s discuss weaponized incompetence: when someone pretends not to know how to do a task well so that they won’t be asked to do it (also known as “strategic incompetence”). Sometimes this is used for ill (like the classic example of men who can’t seem to figure out how to do their own admin work) […] Read the full article →
my friend is dating my employee, the problem with “gentle reminders,” and more by Alison Green on October 5, 2023 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My best friend is dating my employee I own a small cocktail bar in a small town and recently one of my oldest and best friends, who is also a regular patron, started dating one of my employees. (He gave me an opportunity to weigh […] Read the full article →
an employee I fired is spreading lies to the rest of my team by Alison Green on October 4, 2023 A reader writes: I’m a relatively seasoned public sector (local government) manager going through a difficult situation. Long story short, I fired my assistant director, Malcolm, because he wasn’t performing at the necessary level. Our agency has a year-long probationary period and once it passes, it is very difficult to release someone. As the time […] Read the full article →
my team member has too many ideas and can’t prioritize by Alison Green on October 4, 2023 A reader writes: One of my team members is responsible for figuring out how we can manufacture new designs and making sure our old designs are still durable. And he’s great at it — he’s super-smart and keeps on top of the latest technology. He’s so great at this, in fact, that every month or […] Read the full article →
my patronizing coworker interrupts meetings to explain basic things to me by Alison Green on October 4, 2023 A reader writes: My coworker, Craig (mid-40s, male), chronically interrupts discussions in meetings, ostensibly to “help” me (mid-50s, female) by explaining obvious things. Typical example: Other Coworker is proposing a plan to use to our advantage a quirk in the way our state categorizes, say, UFO sightings. I’m well aware of this quirk, because I […] Read the full article →
my boss never apologizes for being late, employee announces her time off rather than requesting it, and more by Alison Green on October 4, 2023 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. My boss never apologizes for being late My manager is always late. Always. Especially in the mornings. She’s acknowledged that it’s a problem and that she’s working on it, but it keeps happening. She’s even off-handedly said she thinks she should be put on a […] Read the full article →