We have this tendancy as a society to assume that just because someone is notably successful in one area that they must be a paragon of humanity in all other ways when—well, this often couldn't be farther from the actual truth. See, there's this thing that happens to those who have early success—or have success thrust upon them thanks to nepotistic opportunity—where they also think they're better than everyone else. If they found their success through a singular focus on their chosen path, it's…

KPIs are an important part of business operations, ensuring that workers are on track. Still, you've probably heard about “SMART” goals before, and while the acronym itself might be a little bit dumb, it still stands to reason that the “A” in “SMART” stands for “Attainable”—and for good reason. There's nothing more demoralizing than when managers set staff an intentionally unattainable goal— The managers who set these types of goals usually take their methods to memoirs from 1980s business magn…

There's this weird thing that happens in employment, you're there to get a paycheck—no question about that. And while your employer will want to pay you (close) to market rate if they want to keep you they're always going to want to pay you as little as they possibly can get away with. You want more, they want to pay less, probably figuring that they'll get the same amount of work out of you regardless. This dynamic will hang over any employment agreement you enter into. There becomes a point t…

Time management is an important skill when it comes to your working life. It's a huge determining factor in ensuring that you get enough done and get it done on time. Prioritization and organization are key components here, preventing you from feeling overwhelmed even in the face of a long to-do list. Meanwhile, organization ensures that you can maintain efficiency without getting in the way of yourself, keeping stress at a minimum. Of course, it's only natural for your manager to share an inte…

A surprising amount of experts and analysts get hired to improve the efficiency of businesses that they know nothing about, putting more effort into marketing themselves and trying to ensure corporate clients than into ensuring their analysis offers any actual value—or that their statistics hold any actual significance. At the end of the day, all they care about is that they're able to give the client some result, a result that the manager who hired them is going to take at face value since the…

People think that their managers don't do any work, merely attending an ever-increasing number of meetings every day, ad infinitum, pretending that they have enough on their plate that they couldn't possibly help you with anything else. But, one of the most challenging parts of a manager's job is ensuring that their team members have enough work to do themselves and not—you know—faffing around all day and enjoying a peaceable existence… All the while not doing a whole lot of actual work themsel…

It's often said that HR is never on your side, but is merely there to maintain an equilibrium that will prevent the organization from opening itself to vulnerability or liability. They are there to manage the “human” resources of the company, and—well, that's you . Still, in instances where you're dealing with someone in the organization—be it a boss, coworker, or other party—who is so incredibly off base with their actions or reasoning, then it just makes sense to go to HR and help them see yo…

Each morning when we get up, get ready, and head to work, we discover that not much has changed from the day before. We work to maintain our means of survival and to enjoy occasional vacations. That being said, how would you feel if, in spite of your diligence, your employer decided to follow you around as if the objective were personal rather than shared? The following story tells the story of a disappointed gas station employee. The original poster (OP) worked at the gas station for an extens…

We work to earn money to support ourselves and our families and to give ourselves a chance at a life of better comfort and the space to pursue our individual interests. Sure, some of us might be lucky enough to reasonably enjoy our work and even find fulfillment in it, but it still serves as the means to an end. In short, you work so that you can better enjoy the time spent not working. And in some sort of weirdly depressing poetic sort of sense, the two are permanently at odds with each other.…

It's ironic how the cubicle was the symbol of working-class oppression in the 80s, 90s, and 00s, with countless references in popular culture using it to establish the character's insignificant overlooked place in society. The cheap grey carpet and the temporariness of the fabrication reflected how the organizations viewed their lowest productive workers—too expendable to bother placing in an ordinary office.

Being overworked and understaffed, working long hours at odd hours, is no way to live your life. Still, many of us are doing so in order to eke out a living in this wild world. It can even seem manageable while you're in it, grinding out the hours to keep up with an ever-increasing workload to keep the bossman happy while seasonal demand runs its course or to cover for that vacant role that they've yet to see fit to fill. The reality is, by trying to do the right thing and keep everyone happy,…

People will always be willing to better their own situation at the expense of others, whether it's that guy in front of you who sees fit to recline his seat for the entirety of a 15-hour flight despite having no one in front of or next to him, or something like cutting a queue in traffic or manipulating the schedule so that they don't have to work a shift that they find to be inconvenient. Everyone's the hero of their own story, so they, of course, won't see themselves as doing anything wrong.…

When you actually like the place you work and can tolerate the people you work with, it's easy to reason that going into an office once in a while might present some benefit. But if you're being forced to go into an office where no one talks to each other (except under duress) just to do all of your work alone in an isolated room and all your meetings over Zoom anyway… It's easy to scratch your head and wonder what the point of all this really is. This worker shared how their employer made the…

Good childcare is hard to find… and it doesn't come cheap. It's reached the point where many families are now weighing up the costs of childcare and finding that it actually doesn't make sense for one spouse to work when their entire salary is going to the childcare costs incurred by their absence. Even for families that can afford it, filling the gaps between childcare providers is particularly challenging, creating a mess of busy schedules and further complicating workplace obligations. For t…

Hiring—especially in the way it's usually conducted—is not an exact science. There's a whole lot of speculation and social shadowboxing going on with elaborately constructed facades masking true personalities in order to seem more put together and desirable according to the bizarre decorum of the entire process. The entire thing is based more on “vibes” than any concrete Superstition seems to reign on both sides of the interview table, with everyone having their own tricks. Even the most well-i…

When you're in charge, it's pretty important that you follow your own rules, drinking the Kool-Aid that you've set out for everyone else to drink. Anything else would be hypocritical at best, causing dissension and demotivating those you're supposed to be leading and generally just setting a bad example. Conversely, being consistent and fair in your leadership helps foster a culture of accountability; by holding yourself to the same standards you've set for everyone else, you demonstrate the in…