Mortification Week: the ageist insult, the exam room kiss, and other stories to cringe over by Alison Green on July 31, 2024 It’s Mortification Week at Ask a Manager and all week long we’ll be revisiting ways we’ve mortified ourselves at work. Here are 12 more mortifying stories. 1. The disk Grad school in the late 90s. I was a female graduate student working at a computer lab. One professor had written a computer program on a […] Read the full article →
update: how should I balance workplace red flags vs. the necessity to get a job? by Alison Green on July 31, 2024 Remember the letter-writer wondering about how to balance workplace red flags vs. the need to get a job? Here’s the update. Thank you so much for your thorough reply! I really appreciate it. Those are great insights, especially what you said about building up how to handle it well if I do end up in […] Read the full article →
Mortification Week: the wrong translation, the Oompa Loompa, and other stories to cringe over by Alison Green on July 31, 2024 It’s Mortification Week at Ask a Manager and all week long we’ll be revisiting ways we’ve mortified ourselves at work. Here are 12 mortifying stories to kick off today. 1. The socks I had to go into site one weekend and found the security officer doing his rounds while wearing socks but no shoes. This […] Read the full article →
is my girlfriend’s boss crossing a line, commenting on food expenses from a business trip, and more by Alison Green on July 31, 2024 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Is my girlfriend’s boss crossing a line? My girlfriend is a manager at a psychiatric office, but I feel that her male boss crosses the line in conversations — for example, giving her his opinion on periods and how she shouldn’t have one and telling […] Read the full article →
Mortification Week: the mustache party, the hat police, and other stories to cringe over by Alison Green on July 30, 2024 It’s Mortification Week at Ask a Manager and all week long we’ll be revisiting ways we’ve mortified ourselves at work. Here are 13 more mortifying stories to enjoy. 1. The mustache party My partner and I were in our 20s and we had just moved across the country for my grad school program. He got […] Read the full article →
my employee texts me late at night by Alison Green on July 30, 2024 A reader writes: One of my employees texts me at 10:45 pm. I’m wondering how I can firmly but fairly lay down boundaries and let her know it’s not okay or respectful of my free time to message so late. I answer this question — and three others — over at Inc. today, where I’m […] Read the full article →
Mortification Week: the lettuce hater, the stolen lunch, and other stories to cringe over by Alison Green on July 30, 2024 It’s Mortification Week at Ask a Manager and all week long we’ll be revisiting ways we’ve mortified ourselves at work. Here are 14 mortifying stories to kick off today. 1. The sweater I flashed my coworkers during a video call. All men. I was wearing a thick, flowy sort of sweater and sitting next to […] Read the full article →
retiring coworker took credit for our full product line, can I take off my shoes at work, and more by Alison Green on July 30, 2024 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Coworker’s retirement email took credit for our full product line I received an email from a coworker who is retiring next month. The worker, let’s call him Carl, announced his upcoming retirement and then bragged for a long paragraph about his integral design accomplishments for […] Read the full article →
Mortification Week: the hickeys, the rogue zipper, and other stories to cringe over by Alison Green on July 29, 2024 It’s Mortification Week at Ask a Manager and all week long we’ll be revisiting ways we’ve mortified ourselves at work. Here are 15 more mortifying stories to enjoy. 1. The zipper Last year I had to give a very important presentation in front of very important customers, part of a week-long roadshow. I had packed […] Read the full article →
summer internship season is upon us by Alison Green on July 29, 2024 With summer internship season in full swing, your workplace may be experiencing an influx of young people who don’t quite know how work works yet. This is often delightful! Interns can bring new ideas, fresh energy, and an ability to explain what brat summer is. But part of hosting interns is accepting that they often […] Read the full article →