Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Mixed Messages at Work, Aaargh

I've been very much caught up in my Grand Office Drama of late--the latest is an email from my boss (not the one with whom I had the chat last Wednesday--the other one, with whom I work more closely) to the effect that she wants to take me out to lunch a week from today to thank me for my good work this year, and that my other boss (her boss, too) is busy but will meet with us briefly before we go out. That sounds like good news, I think (?), but that last conversation, as y'all know, made me want to pull my hair out.

You know how they (whoever They are) say that mixed messages are a form of emotional manipulation? That the idea is to keep you dangling?

I believe them.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Having witnessed such mixed messages in my own situations and hearing of them from friends too, I feel I have to warn you most of the time that stuff doesn't end up as well as you've hoped; often because of your own mistakes and shortcomings in the way you've handled things and/or the less-than-desirable workplaces/jobs you often have to put up with when you're young.

Both of which you can't do much about except learn from it and recognize pitfalls before you get to them next time.

I can't tell you how many times in my past that I've mapped out in my head what I thought the crappiest answer an employer could reasonably give me about something and they've stunned me by going to an even more disappointing level.

It hurts and makes you angry, but it's such good motivation to improve and find something better!! That's what's happened to me, definitely.

Anonymous said...

good luck! I hope it's good news for you!