After my first truly horrible interaction with my boss’ boss, I sat, stunned, in front of my laptop. In what I had thought was going to be an uneventful one-on-one meeting, she opened with, “You don’t seem happy here, and we don’t want people here who are unhappy. I would be more than happy to find you another job somewhere else.”
I needed this job, and I wasn’t unhappy—though I also wasn’t shy about suggesting ways to improve workflows and highlighting recurring points of friction. My feelings were hurt, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt. Her intentions were good, I thought. She just worded her concern poorly.
