342
votes
A peer "gives" me tasks in public and makes it look like I work for him
You don't need to be confrontational here to handle things appropriately - just be matter of fact.
To "assigning tasks":
Bob, thanks for the suggestion. I'd encourage you to talk to [...
- 15.3k
284
votes
Meeting with the boss one-on-one but a member of HR will be attending
Could be harmless, could be bad. It's clearly significant: Written invitation and HR presence means it's something official where HR makes sure that all laws and procedures are followed. Most likely a ...
- 88.5k
256
votes
How can I politely work my way around not liking coffee or beer when it comes to professional networking?
My suggestion would be to 'grab a coffee' with them, but drink something you DO like, be it water or a soft drink. When someone says 'grab a coffee', it's not an explicit requirement to drink a latte/...
- 1,144
222
votes
My boss wants me to attend a meeting every day before work hours
Isn't the real problem here that they are asking to have work meetings, outside of work hours? We have daily scrums slightly after the day starts so that people can get drinks/etc. and then do the ...
- 1,151
205
votes
I get bored when people talk too much in meetings. What should I do?
What do you advice me to do?
Grin and bear it. Pay attention in spite of your boredom. Take notes.
Not everything can be within your control. Not everything can be exactly the way you'd prefer.
...
- 346k
205
votes
How to support a colleague who finds meetings extremely tiring?
2-4
A four hour meeting is unacceptable for any human. Forget about her specific use case. In the broadest sense, meetings do not help with productivity and serve more as inhibitors rather than ...
- 5,596
197
votes
Accepted
What's the best time to arrive for an interview / meeting / appointment?
The reason for planning to arrive 15 minutes early is so you can have 15 minutes of delay and still be on time. It's so you can take a quick detour into a coffee shop to use the bathroom if you're ...
- 139k
192
votes
My manager wants regular one-on-one meetings: is this bad?
That's totally normal and appropriate and shouldn't freak you out. Good managers frequently have weekly one-on-one's with all their direct reports. It's a way of ensuring that you have time with the ...
- 42.4k
174
votes
How can I politely work my way around not liking coffee or beer when it comes to professional networking?
"Grab a beer" and "Grab a coffee" are colloquialisms. They are not meant to be taken literally. They mean "Let's get together informally and chat."
If you don't drink beer or coffee then drink soda, ...
- 39.1k
154
votes
Accepted
How to tell company that you will be leaving after one day of joining a remote unpaid internship
What is in your contract?
If there is no written contract, no problem. You just say thank you but no, thank you, that's not the deal we had, and walk away. Stress the part about meetings and ...
- 2,461
142
votes
How to react professionally when introduced as an expert?
You've been introduced and with a short explanatory note, which isn't false. It's just the same as they'd said "here's ereOn, he's our X developer". Since you are an expert on X, there's nothing ...
- 4,309
138
votes
Accepted
Missed meeting - acknowledge in an e-mail, or ignore?
While it is possible that you drew more attention to your mistake ( the manager may not have been aware that you missed the meeting ), your communication to the manager is the most professional thing ...
- 64.7k
131
votes
Accepted
What's the proper etiquette when joining an audio conference where people are already talking?
This heavily relies on culture, etiquette and the purpose/nature of said meeting as well as who is actually attending - other colleagues, customers, superiors etc.
Personally I would consider it ...
- 7,324
124
votes
Accepted
I get bored when people talk too much in meetings. What should I do?
Bring a pad and write, write down anything.
It will keep you from looking like a zombie and if the person says something useful, you'll already have pen and paper in hand.
I have a hard time ...
- 156k
109
votes
How to deal with someone ignoring meeting room etiquette
This depends a bit on the company culture and how "accepted" the room booking system is.
In my company, everybody uses the system and expects the room to be available when you book it. In this case ...
- 88.5k
105
votes
Request to meet with the CEO in a hotel before work
You'v e already answered your own question in comments. If it "goes against your security training", then don't do it. Your CEO would also know your security training and wouldn't make you break it. (...
- 71.5k
104
votes
Accepted
Meeting scheduled outside of work hours for support team
If you're not being paid for these "off hours" meetings, that needs to stop immediately.
Unless your support team is supporting things that are literally life-and-death situations (in which case, ...
- 17.7k
104
votes
Agreeing without really agreeing
Sometimes it's a cultural thing.
Some people think it is rude to contradict people, even when they disagree. So they prefix their disagreement with supportive statements of agreement because that's ...
- 71.5k
103
votes
People reacting with anger to my trying to get rid of meetings that should be emails
Talk to your manager. Make sure you are aligned on your meeting load AND the impact it has on your deliverables. Ask for advice on how to respond to meeting requests that are (in your opinion) not ...
- 88.5k
98
votes
What should I tell a customer when my co-worker fails to show up to a meeting?
Talk to your boss before the next meeting and ask what you should do in the case that your coworker cannot make it to the meeting for whatever reason. There is no need to mention that your coworker ...
- 64.7k
95
votes
How to make sure I'm assertive enough in contact with subordinates?
Now, my first reaction is to have a quite serious conversation with the colleague asserting that this behavior is unacceptable. Are there any better options? If the best solution is to discuss it, how ...
- 72.4k
91
votes
Accepted
Is it appropriate to ask to be excused from a chew-out meeting?
No.
If your boss invited you to the meeting, then your boss wants you there. Maybe because your boss doesn't want you to use the "but I wasn't at that meeting about what I was responsible for" excuse....
- 36.1k
88
votes
Accepted
How to answer uncertain question during meeting
No matter how knowledgeable you are, there is no way you could know everything.
Some stuff is really complicated and cannot be actually prepared for. It is going to happen quite regularly, and there ...
- 4,154
85
votes
Accepted
How to politely ask colleagues to converse somewhere else?
What is a polite way to ask people to 'go talk somewhere else'?
"Please, can you take this conversation to a conference room?" will usually get the job done.
The best solution in truth is to use ...
- 84.1k
80
votes
Accepted
Is it appropriate to mute others in a video call
As the meeting organizer, it would certainly be within your scope to mute the offending party, and you should send them a private message notifying them of that so that they don't attempt to speak and ...
- 21.6k
78
votes
Accepted
Should I point out typos to colleagues in meetings?
In most cases, let it slide entirely in that it never needs to be brought up.
If the presentation is being given to peers, but is likely going to go 'up the ladder', make notes and give them (with ...
- 5,242
78
votes
Meeting scheduled outside of work hours for support team
Meetings are work. Therefore they happen within working hours. They may not happen during the time you are providing support, but they are your working hours.
If you have to provide support from ...
- 151k
75
votes
How can I influence a manager to not schedule team meetings during lunch?
While probably not what you want to hear, when one has a unique aversive objection to something that is a widespread social norm within an industry and cannot realistically be argued to be harmful, ...
- 4,593
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