Our resident corporate Agony Uncle, CEO Ken Cheng, tackles business challenges – so you don’t have to.
Dear Ken Cheng,
We were on a team away day doing an escape room and my boss called me a “f—ing idiot”. How do I address his behaviour? – Sandy, Birmingham
Ken writes: First of all, before we can work out whether your boss’ behaviour was wrong, it’s important to establish: were you being a f—ing idiot?
If you weren’t, then your boss’ comment was completely unjustified, and you should file a complaint to HR.
However, if you were actually being one, that’s an entirely different story.
Sure, it’s not nice to be abused by your boss, but sometimes that happens. Sometimes the high pressure of a very important deadline or the ticking clock of an escape room can lead your boss to say some nasty things.
Unfortunately, that is part and parcel of having a job. When you agree to be hired by someone, you are signing up to this.
Bosses like myself are going through a lot of stress keeping the company afloat, and sometimes the best way to relieve that stress is demeaning their employees.
This is only a small price to pay for productivity and success. If you want to make an omelette, you have hurl abuse at your colleagues.
What would you rather have, no hurt feelings and an “L” to your name, or hurt feelings and the a successful escape room trip? I know which I’m picking.
Of course, all of this only applies if you actually did something to deserve your boss’ scorn. The only valid response for you in this situation is to go away to reflect. Take a long breath, look at yourself in the mirror and ask: “was I being a f—ing idiot?”
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