Going shopping for some Louboutins!

Are you scared when your boss calls a manager meeting?

The boss just called you into his office for a manager meeting.  This post is for you if you are the type to:

• have a mini panic attack and wonder what you did wrong
• wouldn’t have a panic attack but would wonder, “WTF does this guy want now?”

We will talk about how to play offense with your career and manager meetings. 

A typical corporate office scene

Out of the blue, your manager calls you into his office.  “Suzy, can I see you in the conference room?”  Or, a meeting request pops up in your inbox to meet with the boss the next day.   Immediately, your Spidey sense is going off.  The situation went from DEFCON 5 to DEFCON 4, an “above normal” state of readiness.  “WTF did I do? WTF could this guy want?”  The person who was your dearly respected manager earlier that morning just became your dreaded “boss”.  Within milliseconds, additional thoughts flash through your head.  “I didn’t mess up the account; we just closed the Acme Publishing deal.  Why would my boss want a manager meeting with me?”   

You turn to your neighbor, looking for some reassurance. One of two scenarios unfolds: 

Scenario #1: 

“Hey Johnny co-worker, the boss just called a manager meeting with me.  Did you get a meeting request?”  Turns out, your co-worker received a similar request. There is an immediate sigh of relief because misery loves company. At least you aren’t alone.  Three seconds later, you realize you still don’t know what is going on and turn to your other neighbor.   “Hey, Jessie co-worker. . .”  

Scenario #2: 

“Hey Johnny, the boss just called a manager meeting with me. “Did you get a similar request?”  He looks at you, puzzled. Sensing a heightened sense of paranoia in your plight, he responds, “You’re screwed.” He then nonchalantly turns back to his computer screen to watch cat videos.  

You planned a vacation or were thinking of buying a pair of new Louboutins. Suddenly, you want to hold off on those expenses.  We quickly escalated to DEFCON 4, and our fingers hovered over the button labeled DEFCON 3.

Your mind quickly goes through scenarios. What have you done for the last couple of days, and then, What have you forgotten?  “Did I miss an appointment?  Did I miss a meeting?  I followed up with Acme Publishing. . . WTF?” 

Distracted

The manager meeting is set for tomorrow, and the rest of your day is shot to hell.  You are going through the motions and getting work done. All you can think about is, “the dreaded manager meeting.”  During breaks with your co-workers, everyone is gossiping about the sales department. You sit in profound silence.  You had plans to go out tonight with your significant other. Now you don’t even want to do that.  The food will be tasteless, and the clock won’t move fast enough.  Although the manager meeting is tomorrow, you want it to be the day AFTER tomorrow. 

That afternoon, you see your boss’s cordial assistant . “What’s up with the manager meeting tomorrow?”  Even this little decision becomes a chore, but in the end, you screw up your courage and flat out ask. 

The assistant looks up, smiles, and responds, “I don’t know, he just asked me to set up the meeting.” She immediately turns her head back to work.  Gag Me!

No sleep

The dinner is tasteless. Your significant other doesn’t pick up that you might be stressed out and babbles about the football game.  That night, you lay in bed staring at the ceiling.  All you can think about is the manager meeting. What you have done and what you may have forgotten at work.  You don’t sleep much.

The next morning, you want to call in sick and avoid the dreaded manager meeting. You are just putting off the inevitable.  Your manager just wanted to check in and see how things were going.  “We haven’t talked in quite a while. I just wanted to see how things were going.   You’ve been doing a great job around here. I just wanted to put some time on the calendar to thank you.  You know how it is around here — if it doesn’t get on the calendar, it won’t happen.” And then your manager flashes you that friendly smile you’re used to seeing.   

The meeting went well

Deep sigh of relief

Back to DEFCON 5. You can see yourself rocking that lil’ black dress and new Louboutins this weekend.  You let out a deep sigh of relief and say in front of your boss, “I thought I was in trouble,” or even worse, “I thought I was going to get fired.”

CLM alert!  CLM alert!  (Career Limiting Move for the HR acronym challenged. It is what we whisper to our HR colleagues at the lunch table when an employee commits a faux pas)

I have said it before and will repeat it.  In a stressful situation, keep your mouth shut and avoid saying anything that could be interpreted as unfavorable. 

Smile and go with the flow. There is no need to spoil the moment with the “F” word—for those who missed it, “Fired.” The word “F” shows insecurity and a lack of confidence, and the company wants confident employees.

Avoid the stress of a manager meeting

There is one easy way to minimize the helplessness. Always keep your manager updated. It’s the right thing for your professional career and the company.

It is your fault if you can say, “We haven’t sat down and talked in a long time.”  This is YOUR career, so take responsibility for it. Email your manager weekly updates. Updates will include what you worked on last week and what you will work on next week. This way, your manager will know what is happening, and there will be no surprises. 

Regularly update your manager on what you are working on. Updates allow your manager the opportunity to make adjustments and suggestions. This ensures we are working on the right priorities.  Managers don’t want to waste company time or resources.  Your manager can only make corrections if they know your agenda.

It is always better to PREDICT what you will accomplish than tell your manager what you accomplished afterward.  A company can estimate better when the teams and departments consistently predict their workload.

This might be your manager’s department, but this is your career. If your manager doesn’t know what you are doing. . .  Out of sight is out of mind. Out of mind makes it tough to quantify a raise or more opportunities.  An ongoing record of predicted accomplishments makes both of these much easier. 

Avoid sleepless nights by keeping your manager informed, and enjoy the Louboutins.

See you at the after party,
HRNasty

nasty: an unreal maneuver of incredible technique, something that is ridiculously good, tricky, and manipulative but with a result that can’t help but be admired, a phrase used to describe someone good at something. “He has a nasty forkball”.

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