Is your boss a killer?
When I was writing My Boss is a Serial Killer, the question I asked myself was "If I had a great boss, but I thought he or she might actually be killing people . . . would I go to the cops, or just turn a blind eye and keep on happily working?" If you think that's a strange question, then you've never had a really bad boss. Surviving that experience will make you adore and appreciate the first good boss you get.
Okay, maybe most bosses aren't killers, but having a bad one is no picnic. I've seen my share of the cranky, the unfair, the demanding, the criminally disorganized, the procrastinating and the mean. Have you got a bad boss story you'd like to share? Send it to me with your first name and city. Don't mention real names and keep it PG-13 and cleaner, but I'll post the good ones on the website.
Send a bad boss story here. Make sure your subject line says "Bad boss story."
Okay, maybe most bosses aren't killers, but having a bad one is no picnic. I've seen my share of the cranky, the unfair, the demanding, the criminally disorganized, the procrastinating and the mean. Have you got a bad boss story you'd like to share? Send it to me with your first name and city. Don't mention real names and keep it PG-13 and cleaner, but I'll post the good ones on the website.
Send a bad boss story here. Make sure your subject line says "Bad boss story."
Is your secretary a nightmare?
But hey, you say. Secretaries aren't perfect either. Boy, is that the truth! If you've got a bad secretary or co-worker story send that right along. I'll post those too, though possibly with rebuttals. Anyway the same rules apply. No real names, and keep it PG-13 and cleaner. Good ones will be posted. And you don't have to be a boss. If you just want to gossip about the lunatic who shares your cubicle quad, go ahead.
Send a bad secretary story here. Make sure your subject line says "Bad secretary story."
Submissions
Thanks to Carla from Jefferson City, who sent both this bad boss and this bad secretary story to me:
The worst boss I ever had liked to stop at my desk and start yelling at me over trivial matters, in front of everyone: co-workers, visiting community members, clergy . . . you get the idea. I scheduled a meeting with him to discuss this and spoke honestly and directly to him about it. I laid it on the line, requesting that if there was a problem with my performance, I had no problem being corrected, trained or even disciplined. But not in an office filled with my peers. He said he was very sorry. He had no idea that he was doing this. That I was doing a great job. That he would never do this again. The next day, I was given a business card from an important visitor with the urgent request to see "the boss" right away. I intercommed his office with this request and immediately, with our visitor and several other people in the office, he stormed out of his domain, grabbed the card, shoved it back into my hand and said “take this blankety-blank card and don't bother me with stuff (he didn't say stuff) when I am busy.” I left at noon and never went back. It felt good.
If you have been in an office situation for more than—what, 6 months?—you have been in the company of a dimwit, pretty-pretty-pretty, or know-it-all secretary. Mine was all of the above. Once when writing to thank a customer for their order, she wrote, “Thank you for your oder”. When I pointed this out to her, her reply was, “I have not been trained!” Also among her comebacks for mistakes were, “Nobody told me that!” “I have no idea” and “Wait a minute - I need to write this down! (This last one was when she was given really difficult instructions like “Turn on the computer and bring up Windows” or “Try to answer the phones on the first or second ring.”) Also in the interest of keeping the office nice she would sit at her desk combing her long hair. Several times a day. Thank goodness! We wouldn't want someone inept AND uncombed.
If you have been in an office situation for more than—what, 6 months?—you have been in the company of a dimwit, pretty-pretty-pretty, or know-it-all secretary. Mine was all of the above. Once when writing to thank a customer for their order, she wrote, “Thank you for your oder”. When I pointed this out to her, her reply was, “I have not been trained!” Also among her comebacks for mistakes were, “Nobody told me that!” “I have no idea” and “Wait a minute - I need to write this down! (This last one was when she was given really difficult instructions like “Turn on the computer and bring up Windows” or “Try to answer the phones on the first or second ring.”) Also in the interest of keeping the office nice she would sit at her desk combing her long hair. Several times a day. Thank goodness! We wouldn't want someone inept AND uncombed.
All submissions become property of Christina Harlin and may be posted wholly or in part to this site.
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