What to Never Tell Your Boss

As a manager here at Goodwill of Silicon Valley, I cringe when I hear negative or self-defeating comments from staff. The truth is that we all may have committed this offense at one time or another; and that everyone is a boss in their own capacity. Even if you are a CEO or self-employed, you are an employee to your customer. A critical piece in maintaining a positive boss-employee relationship is to never allow your boss to think that you dislike your job, or are incapable of doing it.


As obvious as it sounds, these types of comments are uttered frequently through out the workplace. So I have for you, 5 things your boss never wants to hear:


"That's not my job." This is perhaps my biggest pet peeve. My belief is that your job is to do what is asked of you (with the understanding that its purpose is to move the company forward in a positive direction). So even if the task is outside of your regular job description, try to find out why your boss is assigning you this task and express your concerns without stating that it is out of your job description.


"It's not my fault." If something is indeed your fault, take accountability and come up with a solution to fix it as soon as possible. If you feel that you are not at fault for the mistake, again, focus on the solution and fix it. In both cases the real issue is not who did it, but rather that there is something wrong that needs to be repaired; so all you should be communicating is the solution, not who's to blame.



"It's not my problem." When an employee says this, it makes them look like they do not care. They do not care about the company, the team or their job. A better response would be to pitch in and try to help because ultimately a problem within the company IS everyone's problem.


"It can't be done." Uttering these words can make you look incapable or ineffective in your boss's eyes. Before making a negative statement, do some research. Find out why the boss is asking you to do this, what problem are they trying to solve and what the desired outcome is. Come up with a better way to achieve the results, and present that. Chances are the end result is more important than the path to getting there.


"This job is too easy. I am getting bored." While your intention may be to convey that you are brilliant or that you can take on more work, it comes off as sounding that your work is beneath you or, worse, that your job is not necessary to the company. You may in fact talk yourself out of a job. Instead, take an introspective look at yourself and identify ways you can enhance and improve your work performance. Chances are that you are not working to your full potential and are going through the motions of the job. Find out what else you can be doing to better your work performance or to help the company grow.


If you can stop and try to see things through the eyes of your supervisor, you may start to understand what is really being asked of you, and why comments such as these can hurt your career.