WEBVTT - BA Q&A: All Things Career! 0:00:10.119 --> 0:00:13.400 Hey, hey va fam, It's Mandra back with another episode 0:00:13.440 --> 0:00:16.079 of the ba Q and A. This week's episode is 0:00:16.120 --> 0:00:19.200 really special. We went into the vault and picked up 0:00:19.239 --> 0:00:22.400 our favorite career questions so that you can finally win 0:00:22.480 --> 0:00:25.400 at work and crush your career goals. Before we get 0:00:25.400 --> 0:00:28.040 into the show, though, y'all do not want to miss 0:00:28.200 --> 0:00:32.120 next week's episode on Wednesday. Listen. I can't give you 0:00:32.159 --> 0:00:35.479 many details, but I will say that your favorite co 0:00:35.560 --> 0:00:41.320 host and mine may or may not be back ish 0:00:41.760 --> 0:00:44.000 backsh Okay. Listen. If y'all get it, if you know, 0:00:44.159 --> 0:00:47.159 you know, If you don't know, just tune in next Wednesday. 0:00:47.159 --> 0:00:49.480 You do not want to miss this episode. But let's 0:00:49.479 --> 0:00:52.360 get in today's show. It's all about your career questions. 0:00:52.440 --> 0:00:55.959 We took y'all's amazing questions dug up everything you need 0:00:56.000 --> 0:00:59.000 to know about taking your job into your own damn hands, 0:00:59.360 --> 0:01:01.520 from how to stay up for yourself at work to 0:01:01.600 --> 0:01:04.720 the truth about imposter syndrome. Today's show, to be Honest, 0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:08.720 is your essential Brown Ambition guide to advancing in your career. 0:01:09.000 --> 0:01:12.120 All right, let's get into the show. All right, So 0:01:12.319 --> 0:01:15.000 let's shake up this mailbag and see what kind of 0:01:15.080 --> 0:01:18.520 questions y'all have this week, I've got a really interesting mix. 0:01:18.640 --> 0:01:21.760 I'm loving all the career questions, y'all keep them coming. 0:01:22.000 --> 0:01:24.600 Our first question comes from listener Ashley from the Gram. 0:01:24.720 --> 0:01:28.400 She says, Mandy, how do you manage new job jitters 0:01:28.480 --> 0:01:31.640 when you're moving into a corporate space as a career changer. 0:01:32.080 --> 0:01:38.040 What rituals have you developed to manage imposter syndrome? All right, Ashley? 0:01:38.200 --> 0:01:41.920 I feel this deeply because I think anyone who's starting 0:01:41.920 --> 0:01:44.200 a new job, especially if you're starting a new job 0:01:44.240 --> 0:01:47.640 and you've switched career paths, or you're in a different industry, 0:01:48.120 --> 0:01:51.280 or even just joining a new company, it can be stressful. 0:01:51.640 --> 0:01:53.280 But what I like to do is kind of turn 0:01:53.320 --> 0:01:55.000 it on its head and look at it this way. 0:01:55.480 --> 0:01:58.760 Nobody knows anything about Ashley. They don't know where you've been, 0:01:58.840 --> 0:02:01.520 they don't really know what you've done. They are getting 0:02:01.560 --> 0:02:04.200 the first impression of you right now. So really take 0:02:04.240 --> 0:02:07.960 that as like an opportunity, an opportunity for a fresh start, 0:02:08.160 --> 0:02:10.560 an opportunity to do things a little bit differently than 0:02:10.560 --> 0:02:13.480 you did at your previous job. So sitting down and 0:02:13.520 --> 0:02:15.760 thinking through, you know, what are some of the things 0:02:15.760 --> 0:02:17.480 that I wish I had done at my previous job 0:02:17.520 --> 0:02:19.840 that I kind of want to do differently here. For me, 0:02:20.520 --> 0:02:23.200 a big one was boundaries. So setting boundaries when I 0:02:23.200 --> 0:02:25.680 started a new job, the first thirty days of your 0:02:25.720 --> 0:02:28.120 new job, that's when you really tell people, you know, 0:02:28.160 --> 0:02:30.520 here's how I like to work. Here is where I 0:02:30.600 --> 0:02:32.760 keep my boundaries. And when I say boundaries, I mean 0:02:33.000 --> 0:02:34.840 are you going to be the person who's available at 0:02:34.919 --> 0:02:37.920 nine pm to answer emails or even later? Are you 0:02:37.960 --> 0:02:40.400 going to be the person who's you know, awake in 0:02:40.440 --> 0:02:42.560 the morning at five am and they're going to get 0:02:42.560 --> 0:02:45.080 a response from you. Those are little signals that you 0:02:45.120 --> 0:02:47.799 can send to your manager or your colleagues that's going 0:02:47.840 --> 0:02:50.280 to tell them, oh, you know, actually is available all 0:02:50.320 --> 0:02:52.360 the time. So I should not feel any kind of 0:02:52.400 --> 0:02:55.560 way about hitting her up on Slack or texting her 0:02:55.680 --> 0:02:57.839 or sending her an email, you know, with an urgent 0:02:57.919 --> 0:03:01.320 quote unquote urgent question whenever I want too. So in 0:03:01.360 --> 0:03:03.880 those first thirty days, think about how you want to 0:03:03.919 --> 0:03:05.600 work and what kind of boundaries do you want to 0:03:05.639 --> 0:03:08.440 set For me? It was really important to you know, 0:03:08.560 --> 0:03:11.919 establish Okay, I'm going to be available online between the 0:03:12.000 --> 0:03:14.839 hours of nine to let's say four thirty when that's 0:03:14.880 --> 0:03:16.360 my cut off time for when I have to go 0:03:16.400 --> 0:03:19.040 pick up my kid, and making sure that everyone knows 0:03:19.040 --> 0:03:21.280 that and if I want to, you know, set aside 0:03:21.320 --> 0:03:24.640 an hour or two once the baby is down to 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:28.480 answer some emails. That's fine, but really be careful about 0:03:28.919 --> 0:03:31.120 what signals you're sending to people in terms of how 0:03:31.160 --> 0:03:33.760 they can communicate to you when you're starting a new job. Now, 0:03:33.800 --> 0:03:37.360 as far as imposter syndrome, no one really knows what's 0:03:37.400 --> 0:03:39.920 going on inside your head, which can kind of be 0:03:40.360 --> 0:03:43.280 some comfort. So when you show up, you know, no 0:03:43.320 --> 0:03:46.160 one is thinking, oh, Ashley is nervous. You know, Ashley 0:03:46.160 --> 0:03:48.600 does not sure if she can do this job. It's 0:03:48.680 --> 0:03:51.680 fine and it is normal to have those feelings of 0:03:52.240 --> 0:03:55.040 oh crap, I'm in a new role. Am I actually 0:03:55.120 --> 0:03:57.280 going to be able to do this? Or is someone 0:03:57.280 --> 0:03:58.800 going to tap me on the shoulder in a week 0:03:58.840 --> 0:04:00.920 and be like, ooh, ash I don't know if it's 0:04:00.960 --> 0:04:03.200 a good fit. That's probably not going to happen. But 0:04:03.600 --> 0:04:07.240 I just want to normalize this idea of having imposter syndrome, 0:04:07.400 --> 0:04:09.720 Like if you ever gone to a women's focused event 0:04:09.880 --> 0:04:13.800 or a women's career event or a leadership conference. I 0:04:13.960 --> 0:04:16.599 guaran freaking to you that there was a session on 0:04:16.640 --> 0:04:19.080 imposter syndrome. But if you go to a conference like 0:04:19.120 --> 0:04:22.480 a general business conference or a corporate conference where it's majority, 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:25.200 you know, guys, because that's just how the world works, 0:04:25.440 --> 0:04:27.880 I doubt there's going to be a session on imposter syndrome, 0:04:27.960 --> 0:04:29.800 or if there is one, it's probably going to have 0:04:30.160 --> 0:04:33.559 pink and purple colors and be targeting women. The fact 0:04:33.560 --> 0:04:36.000 of the matter is that both men and women have 0:04:36.040 --> 0:04:39.320 imposter syndrome because it's a freaking human response. It's a 0:04:39.400 --> 0:04:42.880 human response to being put into a new situation that 0:04:42.920 --> 0:04:45.560 you haven't proven yourself in yet and just kind of wondering, 0:04:45.640 --> 0:04:48.120 you know, can I do this? So, first and foremost, 0:04:48.120 --> 0:04:51.960 imposter syndrome very normal. Women and men can deal with it. 0:04:52.400 --> 0:04:54.440 But you ask me, you know, what rituals have you 0:04:54.480 --> 0:04:57.320 developed to manage it? First and foremost, just acknowledged this 0:04:57.320 --> 0:04:59.880 as a normal set of emotions. I'm feeling this way 0:05:00.000 --> 0:05:03.160 because I am challenging myself and that is a good thing. 0:05:03.640 --> 0:05:06.120 If it is terrifying to show up to work on 0:05:06.160 --> 0:05:08.400 your first day because you are making a big leap 0:05:08.920 --> 0:05:11.320 or you have moved up into a new, more senior role. 0:05:11.800 --> 0:05:14.200 That's how it's supposed to be. You know, you haven't 0:05:14.200 --> 0:05:17.440 been tested yet, so you're gonna feel a little bit nervous. 0:05:18.000 --> 0:05:21.840 One of my strategies for not so much getting rid 0:05:21.839 --> 0:05:23.200 of it, because like I said, you just have to 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:26.080 learn to live with it, but kind of easing that 0:05:26.480 --> 0:05:30.800 is having sponsors slash allies that I can turn to 0:05:31.040 --> 0:05:34.039 for advice. So if there was a hiring manager that 0:05:34.080 --> 0:05:37.440 brought you into the company, they obviously see potential in 0:05:37.480 --> 0:05:40.080 you and they wanted you for a reason. So remind 0:05:40.080 --> 0:05:41.880 yourself that even if I don't know if I can 0:05:41.920 --> 0:05:45.919 do this, you know, Janis or whoever hired you, Richard, 0:05:46.200 --> 0:05:48.560 they believe in me. They think that I belong here, 0:05:48.640 --> 0:05:52.080 So let me go to them and ask questions. Asking 0:05:52.160 --> 0:05:55.320 questions is another really good tool to use and one 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:59.279 that you may be afraid to actually do because you're worried. Okay, well, 0:05:59.320 --> 0:06:01.159 if I'm asking questquestions and people may not think that 0:06:01.200 --> 0:06:03.760 I'm ready to do this, But your first thirty days 0:06:03.760 --> 0:06:07.039 in a job like this is that honeymoon phase when 0:06:07.040 --> 0:06:09.840 you can you can ask those questions. You can you know, 0:06:10.000 --> 0:06:12.159 make sure you know where the bathroom is, and on 0:06:12.200 --> 0:06:14.359 a larger scale, make sure you know how this system 0:06:14.360 --> 0:06:17.359 works or how that tool works. Ask all your questions. 0:06:17.400 --> 0:06:20.120 Ask all the questions. The worst thing you can do 0:06:20.279 --> 0:06:23.160 is walk into this role and pretend like you already 0:06:23.200 --> 0:06:26.120 know what's going on, and then just suffer in silence 0:06:26.160 --> 0:06:28.039 because you're like, oh, crap, I have no idea what 0:06:28.080 --> 0:06:31.080 anyone's talking about. I don't know what those acronyms mean. 0:06:31.560 --> 0:06:34.280 Ask a lot of questions, and if you don't feel 0:06:34.279 --> 0:06:37.599 comfortable speaking out in you know, semi public settings like 0:06:37.600 --> 0:06:40.320 in a group meeting, that's when you turn to that sponsor, 0:06:40.320 --> 0:06:42.800 that mentor that ally, the person who brought you in, 0:06:43.160 --> 0:06:46.360 the person who referred you, or your directs, your direct supervisor, 0:06:46.680 --> 0:06:49.440 and just ask them, hey, I've actually I've been here 0:06:49.480 --> 0:06:51.360 a few days and I've come up with a list 0:06:51.360 --> 0:06:53.680 of questions I would love to grab, you know, half 0:06:53.680 --> 0:06:55.760 an hour of your time and just walk through these 0:06:55.839 --> 0:06:58.240 questions so that I feel more prepared to do the 0:06:58.320 --> 0:07:02.159 job that I'm here to do. Largely in companies, you 0:07:02.160 --> 0:07:04.440 know you're going to have a team there who's gonna 0:07:04.440 --> 0:07:07.200 want you to succeed, because if you don't succeed, then 0:07:07.200 --> 0:07:09.640 it makes them look bad, and you know people don't 0:07:09.680 --> 0:07:11.920 like to look bad, right, so they're gonna want to 0:07:12.120 --> 0:07:17.000 help you. Ask for help, ask questions. Recognize that if 0:07:17.040 --> 0:07:19.760 you're feeling like a bit of an imposter, that's just 0:07:19.800 --> 0:07:21.880 a sign girlfriend, that you are doing the right thing, 0:07:22.080 --> 0:07:24.080 that you are probably in the right place for yourself 0:07:24.120 --> 0:07:27.720 because you are growing. All right, BA fan Up next, 0:07:27.960 --> 0:07:30.680 more on how to be your best advocate at work. 0:07:32.040 --> 0:07:34.680 All right, ba fam, we are back. Our next question 0:07:34.760 --> 0:07:38.360 comes from an anonymous IG fan. Again, we're at Branda 0:07:38.360 --> 0:07:40.680 Mission podcast on IG, so follow us. You can dem 0:07:40.760 --> 0:07:45.640 us your questions there. Okay, So this person says, Hey, Mandy, 0:07:45.720 --> 0:07:49.000 I just saw your TikTok about that Mercedes recruiter. I 0:07:49.040 --> 0:07:51.200 have a question, and I hope it's not too forward 0:07:51.320 --> 0:07:54.240 or bold of me to ask. I want to renegotiate 0:07:54.280 --> 0:07:56.800 my pay. I feel like I'm underpaid as the only 0:07:56.800 --> 0:08:00.559 billing specialist doing work for two emergency rooms. Any advice 0:08:00.600 --> 0:08:03.520 on how I can go about that? Okay? So, if 0:08:03.520 --> 0:08:05.960 you guys haven't seen this yet, you've got to check out. 0:08:06.000 --> 0:08:08.080 You can go to my ig. I'm at Mandy Money 0:08:08.320 --> 0:08:10.840 on Insta and I'm at Mandy Money with three a's 0:08:10.960 --> 0:08:14.840 on TikTok, and basically what happened was there is this recruiter. 0:08:15.000 --> 0:08:17.640 Her name is Mercedes S. Johnson. I'll never forget her 0:08:17.720 --> 0:08:21.480 name now. So she posted on LinkedIn a screenshot or 0:08:21.520 --> 0:08:25.560 she posted on LinkedIn, and she was bragging about having 0:08:25.560 --> 0:08:28.200 a job candidate accept an offer for eighty five K, 0:08:28.600 --> 0:08:30.560 and she decided to take time out of her day 0:08:30.760 --> 0:08:33.679 to go on LinkedIn and make fun of this person 0:08:33.800 --> 0:08:36.640 and say, you know, the budget was actually one hundred 0:08:36.640 --> 0:08:39.240 and thirty five K, and I don't have time to 0:08:39.240 --> 0:08:41.200 help people learn how to negotiate. I just want you 0:08:41.200 --> 0:08:43.800 guys to know it's really important to know your value. 0:08:44.160 --> 0:08:46.120 And I think I, like a lot of people had 0:08:46.120 --> 0:08:49.560 a visceral reaction to that post from Mercedes because one 0:08:49.600 --> 0:08:52.800 it was just dumb. Two it was not helpful at all. 0:08:52.920 --> 0:08:55.120 I think she thought she was really doing something profound 0:08:55.160 --> 0:08:57.240 with that post, trying to inspire people to know their 0:08:57.320 --> 0:08:59.960 value and to negotiate. But I just don't see how 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:02.440 she can say she didn't have time to give advice 0:09:02.480 --> 0:09:04.520 to that job candidate, but yet she did have time 0:09:04.600 --> 0:09:07.240 to go on the internet and post about it. You know, 0:09:07.280 --> 0:09:09.640 I just thought it was really especially for someone in 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:12.120 her position as a recruiter, you know she's in a 0:09:12.120 --> 0:09:15.560 place of power. And also you know she in her 0:09:15.559 --> 0:09:19.080 public persona talks about herself being someone who helps people 0:09:19.160 --> 0:09:22.960 negotiate and you know, fulfill their career ambitions. And I 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:25.480 just think it was, oh, I don't know, it was. 0:09:25.520 --> 0:09:27.800 It was a bad look for miss Mercedes. But to 0:09:28.280 --> 0:09:33.600 this questions point, it was a good reminder, and we'll 0:09:33.640 --> 0:09:35.480 just try to find a silver lining here. It was 0:09:35.559 --> 0:09:38.120 a good reminder of why it is so important for 0:09:38.280 --> 0:09:42.400 us as job candidates. Advocating for ourselves in the workplace 0:09:42.480 --> 0:09:45.240 is so important because even the people who think maybe 0:09:45.320 --> 0:09:49.080 there to help you get what you deserve, ultimately, we 0:09:49.120 --> 0:09:50.960 are always going to have our best interest and we 0:09:51.000 --> 0:09:53.559 should have our best interest at heart all of the time, 0:09:53.600 --> 0:09:55.440 and we have to learn to step up for ourselves 0:09:55.960 --> 0:09:58.880 and to do our own research to find out when 0:09:58.920 --> 0:10:01.080 we are not being valued way that we should be valued. 0:10:01.320 --> 0:10:04.439 So in your situation, Anonymous, where you say you actually 0:10:04.480 --> 0:10:07.280 want to renegotiate your pay, you feel like you're being underpaid, 0:10:08.080 --> 0:10:11.760 it sounds like you're working in the medical field. And honestly, listen, 0:10:11.800 --> 0:10:15.280 I've got family who work in hospitals and it is 0:10:15.440 --> 0:10:18.160 grueling work, and there is so much turnover as a 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:20.960 result of the pandemic that there are people like you 0:10:21.000 --> 0:10:23.760 who are being left doing more work than ever but 0:10:23.920 --> 0:10:28.880 not actually getting paid anything differently, So renegotiating pay Listen, 0:10:29.559 --> 0:10:31.840 I am the person who will who will always push 0:10:31.840 --> 0:10:34.800 people to just ask the questions, no matter how you 0:10:34.840 --> 0:10:37.960 know bold they may seem. Ask the question. You know, 0:10:38.000 --> 0:10:40.120 go to your manager and just say, point blank, you know, 0:10:40.160 --> 0:10:42.600 I've I have been taking on all this additional work. 0:10:43.120 --> 0:10:46.480 Is there any opportunity to discuss my compensation and to 0:10:46.480 --> 0:10:49.600 get an increase? You can absolutely do that. You don't 0:10:49.600 --> 0:10:51.640 have to wait for your animal review cycle. Just go 0:10:51.640 --> 0:10:53.760 ahead and do it. I can't promise you they're going 0:10:53.840 --> 0:10:56.280 to do something about it. I'm not even gonna I 0:10:56.320 --> 0:10:57.719 don't even know what the odds are that they may 0:10:57.720 --> 0:11:00.160 do something about it. Your best bet is to get 0:11:00.200 --> 0:11:02.679 a competing offer from another job that's actually going to 0:11:02.720 --> 0:11:05.040 pay you more, and then you can actually bring that 0:11:05.080 --> 0:11:06.960 to your current employer and say, you know, I've got 0:11:07.000 --> 0:11:10.280 an offer from X, Y Z, and they're offering me 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:13.080 double what you're paying me, or fifty percent more, whatever 0:11:13.120 --> 0:11:15.840 it is. You have to be ready you should be 0:11:15.920 --> 0:11:20.480 ready prepared to take that new offer and walk. But 0:11:20.880 --> 0:11:23.400 that can be some that can be really good leverage, 0:11:23.520 --> 0:11:26.360 especially if you're you know, you want to stay, but 0:11:26.400 --> 0:11:29.439 you just want to be paid what you're worth. Sometimes companies, 0:11:29.520 --> 0:11:32.120 you know, if you don't give them a reason, like 0:11:32.160 --> 0:11:35.080 a really good reason to give you a pay raise, 0:11:35.120 --> 0:11:37.480 they can like drag their feet. They just don't have 0:11:37.640 --> 0:11:40.800 that incentive, you know, So the risk of you walking down, 0:11:40.880 --> 0:11:42.880 like walking away from the job and leaving them in 0:11:42.920 --> 0:11:45.640 the lurch. Sometimes you just got to like play hardball 0:11:45.800 --> 0:11:47.600 in that way. You got to say, like, yo, I'm 0:11:47.640 --> 0:11:49.679 ready to walk, I've got this juicy offer, what are 0:11:49.679 --> 0:11:51.360 you going to do about it? And then you can 0:11:51.400 --> 0:11:53.640 see how fast they move to get you that raise. Okay, 0:11:54.040 --> 0:11:56.720 So that's my advice to you. You can ask the question, 0:11:57.080 --> 0:11:59.040 and I would go ahead and ask that now, just 0:11:59.080 --> 0:12:02.520 to establish the fact that they know, okay, she's asked 0:12:02.520 --> 0:12:05.959 for this, she's feeling overworked, and then they can actually 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:08.720 then you give them some time to figure out what 0:12:08.760 --> 0:12:11.080 they're going to do, and then on your own going 0:12:11.080 --> 0:12:14.880 out and you know, leveraging your network, telling everyone that 0:12:14.880 --> 0:12:16.959 you're looking for a new opportunity, seeing what else is 0:12:16.960 --> 0:12:19.559 out there getting some interviews you know, and fine and 0:12:20.400 --> 0:12:22.840 potentially even getting a different offer. Then you can bring 0:12:22.880 --> 0:12:26.440 that additional leverage to them and use that for your 0:12:26.440 --> 0:12:32.040 negotiation process. All right, thank you very much for that question. Hey, hey, 0:12:32.120 --> 0:12:34.480 bea fam it's Bandy and I am back to answer 0:12:34.559 --> 0:12:38.120 more of your juicy, juicy career in finance questions again. 0:12:38.200 --> 0:12:41.600 Hit us up at brandonbissionpodcast dot com or are ig 0:12:41.880 --> 0:12:44.880 at brand and Bission Podcast with all of your juicy 0:12:44.960 --> 0:12:48.360 money and career questions. I am really excited about this question, 0:12:48.520 --> 0:12:51.480 Rebecca says, First and foremost, send my love to Tiffany 0:12:51.520 --> 0:12:53.320 as she's healing. Thank you very much for that, and 0:12:53.360 --> 0:12:56.600 I will send some extra love to Tiffany myself. Rebecca says, 0:12:56.600 --> 0:12:58.280 I love you both, and I get so much great 0:12:58.320 --> 0:13:01.200 advice and insights into navigating the professional world as a 0:13:01.240 --> 0:13:04.439 woman of color. My question today is about my boss. 0:13:04.720 --> 0:13:07.040 I'm a recruiter and the company that I work for 0:13:07.200 --> 0:13:10.520 is wonderful. I love the culture they're cultivating. I don't 0:13:10.559 --> 0:13:13.559 want to make a move, but my boss is extremely 0:13:13.640 --> 0:13:17.120 tough to work with right now, she's overstressed and obsessed 0:13:17.160 --> 0:13:20.640 with hitting all our KPIs regardless of whether we hit 0:13:21.120 --> 0:13:24.080 our financial goal that we commit to every month. To 0:13:24.120 --> 0:13:26.080 boil it down, she finds a way to give us 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:29.839 backhanded compliments on our performance as an office and it's 0:13:29.880 --> 0:13:33.880 honestly demoralizing. I've heard this from many co workers as well. 0:13:34.200 --> 0:13:36.840 We've been venting to each other and it's becoming toxic 0:13:36.880 --> 0:13:39.360 to the culture. I want to say something to her, 0:13:39.480 --> 0:13:42.280 but she is a domineering and stubborn force. I would 0:13:42.360 --> 0:13:44.199 love if you can give me some tips on how 0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:48.240 to approach her. Ooh yeah, toxic bosses? Why do they 0:13:48.280 --> 0:13:50.880 have to ruin everything? And you know what's great about 0:13:50.880 --> 0:13:53.160 this question? I mean, obviously it sucks and I feel 0:13:53.200 --> 0:13:56.360 bad for you, but I love that you can have 0:13:56.440 --> 0:13:59.880 at least you're identifying and recognizing that your company culture 0:14:00.160 --> 0:14:03.040 is largely good. So what sucks is that you've got 0:14:03.040 --> 0:14:06.000 a boss who's like screwing it up because largely the 0:14:06.040 --> 0:14:09.400 culture itself is very different than what your interactions with 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:12.160 this boss have been. So how can we tattle on her? 0:14:12.240 --> 0:14:13.920 That's what I want to know. I don't actually think 0:14:13.920 --> 0:14:15.480 it's your job to fix her or make her a 0:14:15.480 --> 0:14:18.560 better manager. My question is like, how can we tattle 0:14:18.600 --> 0:14:20.600 on her in a strategic way to get her out 0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:22.680 of your way so that you can actually enjoy this 0:14:22.800 --> 0:14:26.120 great culture that this company is committed to building. And 0:14:26.160 --> 0:14:28.720 I think toxic managers like her deserve to be called 0:14:28.720 --> 0:14:32.680 out and dealt with because they're ruining like an employees experience. 0:14:33.040 --> 0:14:36.120 And if companies want to retain employees and not have 0:14:36.280 --> 0:14:38.480 us all quitting on them, they need to know who 0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:41.320 their shitty bosses are. Who are the shitty managers who 0:14:41.360 --> 0:14:44.080 actually could use a little bit of professional development support, 0:14:44.480 --> 0:14:47.680 some training like who deserves and the manager sect to 0:14:47.680 --> 0:14:49.920 get a performance improvement plan, And it sounds like your 0:14:49.920 --> 0:14:52.720 boss does. So what are the levers that you can 0:14:52.760 --> 0:14:56.120 pull within your company to actually let people know that 0:14:56.200 --> 0:14:58.200 this manager is making it harder for you to do 0:14:58.240 --> 0:15:01.160 your job and it's not just you. So that's my 0:15:01.200 --> 0:15:04.120 first question. I've worked at places where you could actually 0:15:04.480 --> 0:15:06.440 once a year, they would have a survey that you 0:15:06.480 --> 0:15:09.040 could send out and you could provide anonymous feedback on 0:15:09.080 --> 0:15:12.160 your manager. But if you guys have that annual survey 0:15:12.240 --> 0:15:13.840 and if it's not coming up in the next couple 0:15:13.880 --> 0:15:16.480 of weeks, then I think it's time to actually take 0:15:16.520 --> 0:15:19.120 this to it can be either someone in HR. It 0:15:19.160 --> 0:15:22.040 can be your boss's boss. You can arrange something called 0:15:22.040 --> 0:15:25.160 the skip level meeting, where you intentionally reach out to 0:15:25.320 --> 0:15:28.720 a person above your boss and have a candid conversation 0:15:28.760 --> 0:15:31.440 about what you've been experiencing. Do not go in there. 0:15:31.440 --> 0:15:33.400 This is my advice to you. Don't go in there 0:15:33.480 --> 0:15:37.200 empty handed. In terms of data and information and actual 0:15:37.320 --> 0:15:40.280 examples of what has happened, I think you should definitely 0:15:40.320 --> 0:15:42.920 be in the collecting of data phase right now. So 0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:46.240 start writing out what has she said, what has she 0:15:46.400 --> 0:15:49.520 done that has created a toxic work culture, And the 0:15:49.560 --> 0:15:52.720 more concrete examples you can give, the more likely it 0:15:52.760 --> 0:15:55.280 is that they will actually do something about them. So 0:15:55.280 --> 0:15:58.160 if you walk into your manager's manager's office and you say, hey, 0:15:58.240 --> 0:16:00.880 I'm having a really hard time with Tracy. She's making 0:16:00.920 --> 0:16:04.080 my job just you know, horrible and awful. Now, you're 0:16:04.080 --> 0:16:06.920 just creating a problem that this manager's manager has to 0:16:06.920 --> 0:16:09.480 figure out, make their job a little bit easier, and 0:16:09.520 --> 0:16:11.320 also make it more likely that they're going to take 0:16:11.360 --> 0:16:14.920 your claim seriously. By having some cold, hard facts. Not 0:16:14.960 --> 0:16:17.920 only does this illustrate the reality of what's going on, 0:16:18.320 --> 0:16:21.040 but it also shows them, well, this person is bad 0:16:21.200 --> 0:16:24.520 enough where Rebecca feels like she has to keep tabs 0:16:24.560 --> 0:16:28.320 on all these different instances and occurrences. So put the power. 0:16:28.360 --> 0:16:30.240 Take the power back in a little bit of control 0:16:30.480 --> 0:16:33.160 by starting to document all of the situations that have 0:16:33.200 --> 0:16:35.800 occurred where this boss has, like I said, created a 0:16:35.840 --> 0:16:40.280 toxic environment, ben demoralizing. Take screenshots if she's texting or 0:16:40.320 --> 0:16:43.040 sending emails or slack messages, whatever it is that are 0:16:43.080 --> 0:16:46.800 causing these situations. Take your screenshots, get organized, and then 0:16:46.920 --> 0:16:49.360 plan a meeting. And if you want to combine forces 0:16:49.360 --> 0:16:51.480 with the other people on your team, there really is 0:16:51.560 --> 0:16:54.400 power and numbers if a company knows that it's not 0:16:54.520 --> 0:16:56.600 just one person who's having an issue with this boss, 0:16:56.640 --> 0:16:58.920 it's six people. And by the way, this team is 0:16:58.960 --> 0:17:01.680 in danger of falling upon heart, as are our financial 0:17:01.760 --> 0:17:04.399 goals and our business goals for this team. Believe me, 0:17:04.480 --> 0:17:07.040 they will listen to you. So I think there's power 0:17:07.080 --> 0:17:09.200 and numbers if you want to get together a little 0:17:09.200 --> 0:17:12.080 consortium or a group of colleagues and maybe set up 0:17:12.119 --> 0:17:14.080 a group meeting to speak in a safe space with 0:17:14.160 --> 0:17:16.560 your manager's manager, whoever else at the company you can 0:17:16.600 --> 0:17:20.400 identify to accept this kind of complaint. That's a good strategy, 0:17:20.440 --> 0:17:23.399 but definitely walk in there with concrete examples. It's going 0:17:23.440 --> 0:17:26.000 to make everything go a lot faster and be a 0:17:26.040 --> 0:17:29.680 lot more likely that they're actually going to take action. Now, 0:17:29.840 --> 0:17:33.399 how they react to your complaints about this manager and 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:36.320 your documentation is going to tell you the real truth 0:17:36.359 --> 0:17:39.080 about their work culture. If they really are committed to 0:17:39.119 --> 0:17:41.119 creating the kind of culture that you're describing, where they 0:17:41.200 --> 0:17:43.480 want people to feel welcome, where they want you to 0:17:43.520 --> 0:17:45.840 do your best work and to be thriving, and yes, 0:17:45.880 --> 0:17:47.840 we're going to achieve our business goals, we're not going 0:17:47.880 --> 0:17:50.720 to do it at the expense of our mental health 0:17:50.760 --> 0:17:54.439 and the expense of our happiness in general, then they 0:17:54.440 --> 0:17:57.480 will take your complaints seriously, or they should and actually 0:17:57.520 --> 0:18:00.959 either do something meaningful to get this manager, you know, 0:18:01.040 --> 0:18:03.880 on the right path. They should get rid of her, 0:18:03.960 --> 0:18:06.639 reassign her, maybe they can reassign you to someone else. 0:18:07.040 --> 0:18:09.720 They should do something, take some sort of action, maybe 0:18:09.800 --> 0:18:12.520 give them, I don't know, a few weeks to do something. 0:18:12.680 --> 0:18:14.920 But if they don't do something, then that actually tells 0:18:14.960 --> 0:18:17.280 you what they really mean about that culture they're trying 0:18:17.320 --> 0:18:19.640 to cultivate, Because if they're not going to solve this problem, 0:18:19.680 --> 0:18:22.840 then that culture was always a ticking time bomb. It 0:18:22.880 --> 0:18:25.560 was always going to fall apart because they're not protecting it. 0:18:25.640 --> 0:18:29.600 Companies have to be protective. They have to be unapologetically 0:18:29.640 --> 0:18:33.199 protective about anything that can be a threat to employee retention, 0:18:33.240 --> 0:18:35.639 employee happiness, and to that culture that they say that 0:18:35.680 --> 0:18:38.520 they want to cultivate. And the uncomfortable truth about that 0:18:38.720 --> 0:18:41.119 is that they're going to have to identify these shitty 0:18:41.200 --> 0:18:44.720 managers and do something about them. And the more companies 0:18:44.760 --> 0:18:47.960 are willing to acknowledge that it's not just the lowest, 0:18:48.119 --> 0:18:50.200 you know, entry level employee that they have to pay 0:18:50.240 --> 0:18:53.840 attention to, it's managers, Like why aren't we training better 0:18:53.920 --> 0:18:57.640 managers like we cause they're causing so many issues out 0:18:57.640 --> 0:19:00.879 there right. So I'm obviously really really fired up about 0:19:00.880 --> 0:19:04.040 how important it is for companies to identify, you know, 0:19:04.240 --> 0:19:07.359 crappy managers, give them the support and training that they need. 0:19:07.680 --> 0:19:09.760 I'm not even saying that it's your boss's fault, that 0:19:09.800 --> 0:19:11.720 maybe she's creating this. She may not even be aware 0:19:11.720 --> 0:19:13.240 of it, and you know what, it may be coming 0:19:13.240 --> 0:19:15.920 from her higher ups. They may be putting pressure on her. 0:19:16.200 --> 0:19:17.800 So we need to like get to the root cause 0:19:17.840 --> 0:19:19.320 of it and they need to fix it. And if 0:19:19.320 --> 0:19:21.760 they don't fix it, then I think it's okay for 0:19:21.800 --> 0:19:23.800 you to move on, you know, find a company where 0:19:23.840 --> 0:19:26.480 you can work for, you know, work for that actually 0:19:26.840 --> 0:19:29.520 enforces the culture that they, you know, talk about creating 0:19:30.119 --> 0:19:32.439