I have a morning alone one day and would like to plan something that feels soul healing. I have limited mobility due to a herniated disc (cause for my depression) and would like to plan something that isn’t yoga or a massage like I typically see recommended. I enjoy nature but as a petite female also want to feel safe being alone. I’m not against guided tours either.
Traveling with my parents and trying to find things to do that pleases everyone. My parents read about it and thought it sounded fun until they got to the part about farm animals. They think it sounds childish. If you did it, did you find it fun?
I remember early in my career having to memorize all of my talking points because presentations were done in person. Now, thanks to Zoom and Teams, presentations are primarily done online.
I’ve developed the habit of keeping my talking points up on one screen and the presentation up on another. I do my best to make myself still sound natural as if I’ve memorized what I want to say, but I heavily rely on my notes. Depending on how little prep time I was given, there are times I just read word for word from my notes.
I can often tell when people are reading a script but I really don’t care that they do. The information is the same regardless. As long as they present it in an engaging way I don’t see the issue.
I’m curious how others feel and if they do the same.
Edit: To clarify, I’m not referring to reading the slide deck. I’m referring to separate notes that complement the slide deck.
My manager tends to give very vague directions but expects very specific results.
For a couple of years, I would just run with what they said and do things the way I thought made sense. That usually led to rework because I didn’t have the full context. So I’ve been trying to improve by asking more clarifying questions upfront instead of making assumptions.
The problem is, they seem irritated when I do.
For example, they might say: “Generate a survey to obtain customer feedback.” I’ll follow up and ask if there are specific themes or areas they want the survey to focus on so I can make sure it aligns with what they are looking for. Their response will be something like: “What do you think we should be aiming for?”
I understand they want me to be independent, but when I ask questions, it’s not because I don’t have ideas, it’s because I want to make sure I’m aligned with their expectations and avoid rework. It feels like they interpret those questions as a lack of initiative, which isn’t my intent.
Another example: after an anonymous employee satisfaction survey was sent out, they came back months later and asked me to check whether my team had taken it. I asked if they wanted a general sense of participation or actual names (since it was anonymous). They replied, “I would assume you’d be comfortable enough to share names,” which seemed like an unnecessary way to respond.
We keep running into these communication issues. I’m trying to be proactive and set myself up for success, but it feels like that’s being interpreted negatively instead. They seem very relaxed and fun with my colleagues but cold and unsupportive towards me.
Has anyone dealt with something similar? How did you handle it?
I’ve been with my company for nearly 5 years, and my current manager has overseen most of that time. Early on, she consistently praised my independence and reliability, and I’ve built a track record of exceeding expectations.
A few years ago, I advocated for a promotion based on performing above my scope. It took about a year, but I eventually received it. Since then, my responsibilities have continued to grow, and I recently approached her again, not asking for an immediate promotion, but for mentorship to help me reach the next level.
Unfortunately, she hasn’t been investing in that. She frequently cancels our 1:1s, and when I ask for guidance, she often redirects me to figure things out on my own. For example, when I needed help learning a new system for a project, she told me to “click around” instead of walking me through it.
She is also often vague with instructions and answers, which leads to misalignment on expectations. I end up completing work that doesn’t match what she had in mind and have to redo it, which feels preventable with clearer guidance upfront.
I’ve also tried to take initiative, like proposing workflow automations, but I’ve been denied the resources to implement them. On top of that, she rarely acknowledges my wins and tends to minimize them. When I provide thoughtful feedback or challenge ideas, she becomes defensive.
It also feels like her focus is more on how her own work is perceived by leadership than on developing her team. For example, she comes across as very aligned and personable with other leaders, but that doesn’t translate into support or advocacy for me.
Overall, working with her feels like walking on eggshells.
This has been going on long enough that I’m feeling burned out and resentful, to the point where I’m not sure I’ll ever look at my job the same. At the same time, the current job market makes me hesitant to try to switch roles right now.
I’ve considered escalating, but her boss is a close friend of hers, which makes me uncomfortable going that route.
At this point, I’m torn on whether I should try to share this feedback directly with her in a constructive way, or if doing so would just further damage the relationship given how she’s responded to feedback in the past. Has anyone dealt with something similar, and did addressing it directly help or make things worse?
Trying to choose my meal and the vegan meal option doesn’t list what it actually is. There is an Asian Vegetarian option and Fruit & Cheese option too, but I’d like to avoid dairy. If the vegan option sucks though then I’d consider the other two. Curious if there’s feedback on those as well.
Thanks!
Edit: Flying domestic between NC to CO if that makes a difference.