Ava
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Post by Ava on Feb 8, 2016 11:06:28 GMT -5
I'm in so much trouble right now!
My manager authorized me to work from home on snow days. But the weather had been great until last week, and I totally forgot to bring my laptop to work so he can install a device on it. That would allow me to work from home.
Last Thursday afternoon I realized we were up for quite a bit of snow on Friday. It wasn't clear until then how much snow we would get, and it was quite a bit. So I talked to my manager and he said it's up to you what to do. I didn't go in last Friday, taking a personal day off. Fine so far.
Flash forward to this morning and my car didn't start. I called AAA and they said it wasn't the battery as I suspected. The guy jump-started it and I was able to take it to the garage. It wouldn't start again once I turned it off. It needs an alternator to the tune of $500.
So I emailed my manager to let him know what's going on. He answers immediately saying he's found another big error and to stop by and see him RIGHT AWAY as soon as I get into work.
The mechanic said the car should be ready by noon. I live an hour away from work in good weather. It started to snow again about an hour ago and it's coming down pretty heavy. I am afraid of driving in the snow and my car is front wheel, so not the best. Supposing I get my car at noon it would easily take me 90 minutes or more to make it to work today. I don't know what to do. It's supposed to snow tomorrow and Wednesday too, quite heavily.
My manager is angry with me, I can tell by the tone of his email. He found a big mistake in a review I did a couple of weeks ago. Now he's found another per the message he sent me. I feel awful. I try and try but I am not very good at my current position. I am average, and sometimes I make mistakes. I just don't want to do this job anymore. It's not a good fit for me. I like my manager, my coworkers and the environment, but not the tasks I have to do. It's not something that comes easily or naturally. I've known for a while but I haven't been able to change jobs within the company.
I don't know what to do. I feel embarrassed, and I also feel like I've let him down. At the same time I'm tired of the stress and the feeling of inadequacy. I don't want to drive there this afternoon. I would like to see him and hear what he has to say, but I don't feel safe driving there. Tomorrow will be more of the same weather wise, apparently. I am tired of the situation, of finishing something and hoping it is ok, with no mistakes. I don't like my current position or my situation. Don't know what to do.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Feb 8, 2016 11:29:33 GMT -5
If your car is front wheel drive and has decent tires on it, you will be fine if you drive carefully.
I honestly think that you need to get your tail to work ASAP. Waiting until tomorrow is gong to make it worse, and if I was your manager, it would piss me off more.
jmho
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Feb 8, 2016 11:33:32 GMT -5
I'd suck it up, grab a couple of changes of clothes just in case you need to stay in a hotel tonight, and get to work. You'll feel worse if you wait until tomorrow or Wednesday to deal with the issue.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Feb 8, 2016 11:42:19 GMT -5
I'm waiting for the garage to call me. They said the car should be ready at noon. It is now 11:38.
I'll go to work today as long as I get the car back at noon or 1PM at the latest. My manager leaves work at 4:30.
I am so stressed right now. I also feel that I need to have an honest discussion with him, but I don't dare. What am I going to say; I am not good at my job, don't feel comfortable doing it but I cannot find another role in this company?
Anyway, the moment I make it there I'm going to let him talk and listen without interrupting. That's all I got
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Feb 8, 2016 11:51:17 GMT -5
Most of us have had jobs that weren't ideal.
We go to work and give our very best effort because we need a paycheck and health insurance.
So do you.
It's the trade off most adults make in order to make a living, all the while looking for a better (fit, money, position, commute, etc.) job.
Go in. Take the hit. Lay out ways you can do better and ride it out until you pass the CPA and move to Miami. When you get home, eat dinner, prepare for tomorrow, and then study. You'll be one day closer to your goal.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Feb 8, 2016 12:01:27 GMT -5
I'm waiting for the garage to call me. They said the car should be ready at noon. It is now 11:38.
I'll go to work today as long as I get the car back at noon or 1PM at the latest. My manager leaves work at 4:30.
I am so stressed right now. I also feel that I need to have an honest discussion with him, but I don't dare. What am I going to say; I am not good at my job, don't feel comfortable doing it but I cannot find another role in this company?
Anyway, the moment I make it there I'm going to let him talk and listen without interrupting. That's all I got You don't say anything, listen to him and accept his criticism. Don't try to excuse yourself. You screwed up, own up to it. We all have to do crap at work that we are not good at and don't like doing. For this stuff, it is even better to work harder at it and do it well. I don't think that there has ever been a time where one chore of my job I have not abhorred with every cell of my being, and I suspect most also.
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andi9899
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Post by andi9899 on Feb 8, 2016 12:09:07 GMT -5
Do I have you confused with someone else, or didn't you say that you had a really good relationship with your manager? Have a frank discussion with him. I thought that he was very pleased with you. Did you change positions? If so, can you go back?
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Feb 8, 2016 12:11:39 GMT -5
I am tired of the situation, of finishing something and hoping it is ok, with no mistakes
That's life. There is no job where you can do everything perfect 100% of the time. If such a job exists then please let me know b/c I want to apply for it! I have a ton of stuff I hate doing at my job but I do it anyhow b/c otherwise I am not going to be employed for very long. Right now I'd rather be at home dying. I sucked it up and came in b/c I promised to have mice weaned by this afternoon. I also had a presentation dropped in my lap that I am expected to do tomorrow, hopefully my voice holds out. I suggest getting yourself in even if you have to beg a ride from someone and then sleep in the office overnight. It is far better for YOU to get in, own up and fix your mistakes. The longer you try to postpone going in the more it's going to look like you are hiding/not accepting your mistakes and the more pissed off your manager is going to get.
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Feb 8, 2016 12:16:13 GMT -5
We do all feel this way, from time to time, so you are not alone.
I often feel it most when I have screwed up as a way to soften whatever blow is coming my way.
Go in and take the hit and then double-down on your duties and STUDY!!!
Plan on staying over in a hotel.
Or, at least, don't leave until your laptop is updated and bring work home with you and get it done.
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milee
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Post by milee on Feb 8, 2016 12:16:22 GMT -5
It also might help to keep your manager up to speed on the status of you coming in. If noon passes and the car isn't ready, you should even think about renting a car or taking some other transportation to get to the office. Not sure why you wouldn't go in if you didn't have the car back by 1. Especially if it sounds like the snow may prevent you from getting in for the next few days and you forgot to get the software to allow you to work at home... even more important to make sure you get to the office today.
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Feb 8, 2016 12:18:58 GMT -5
Also, find a repair place that offers loaners to customers. Sometimes they're "free", sometimes they're not but still more reasonable than a commercial car rental. That way you can drop your car off and still get to work at a reasonable time.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Feb 8, 2016 12:21:01 GMT -5
I sympathize about the snow but I am assuming you live in an area that at some point in winter will eventually get snow, not somewhere like Atlanta where a flurry shuts down the entire city. As such using snow as an excuse to not come into work gets old after awhile. I am not saying to kill yourself or others trying to get into work, there are days when it is just not worth it. However in this case it IS worth it. If you are careful and stick to the emergency snow routes you should be fine. Worst case you have to stay at work or a hotel close by overnight until the streets are clear enough to get home. I've slid sideways down 40th & Dodge before while getting into work. There was someone looking out for me that day. It would be one thing if you had remembered to get the software downloaded onto your laptop, you didn't. You need to at least make it in long enough to complete that task.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Feb 8, 2016 12:30:24 GMT -5
Do I have you confused with someone else, or didn't you say that you had a really good relationship with your manager? Have a frank discussion with him. I thought that he was very pleased with you. Did you change positions? If so, can you go back? No, it's still me and I'm still at the same job. I have a great relationship with him, and he's been great. It's just that the company keeps piling stuff on him, he's really stressed out. In addition, he found two big mistakes in my work in a matter of two weeks. I don't know what exactly happened today, but last time a bigwig pulled my report and saw the mistake. The bigwigs don't get back to me, they call him and get mad at him. So I'm guessing it happened again today. Like I said; I like him, my coworkers, and the environment. The job itself is not a good fit for me. I've known it for a while, and I haven't been able to move to another position.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Feb 8, 2016 12:33:22 GMT -5
We do all feel this way, from time to time, so you are not alone. I often feel it most when I have screwed up as a way to soften whatever blow is coming my way. Go in and take the hit and then double-down on your duties and STUDY!!! Plan on staying over in a hotel. Or, at least, don't leave until your laptop is updated and bring work home with you and get it done. Great advice. I got my NTS for two parts of the CPA. I'll patch up things at work as fast as I can, and then make studying my priority. I got to move on.
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gregintenn
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Post by gregintenn on Feb 8, 2016 12:36:12 GMT -5
Get your resume current while you wait for the garage to call?
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Feb 8, 2016 12:48:17 GMT -5
Get your resume current while you wait for the garage to call? Oh no. I hope it doesn't come to that.
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gregintenn
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Post by gregintenn on Feb 8, 2016 12:50:49 GMT -5
Get your resume current while you wait for the garage to call? Oh no. I hope it doesn't come to that.
Why not? Life's too short to work at a job you dread.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2016 12:51:09 GMT -5
Get your resume current while you wait for the garage to call? That might be a bit extreme. If the quality of your work is normally very good you can survive a couple of mistakes. But it SUCKS going through the process. My sympathies ava.
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gregintenn
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Post by gregintenn on Feb 8, 2016 12:53:00 GMT -5
Get your resume current while you wait for the garage to call? That might be a bit extreme. If the quality of your work is normally very good you can survive a couple of mistakes. But it SUCKS going through the process. My sympathies ava. I wasn't predicting she's about to get fired. I'd leave if I disliked a job that much.
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Ava
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Post by Ava on Feb 8, 2016 13:02:37 GMT -5
It's coming down pretty bad here. There's no bus or school service today. We have ONE taxi here; not one company, one taxi, and it doesn't go out when it snows. My only hope would be the train I guess? The next train leaves at 3 something in the afternoon. I would have to walk to the station, which is not exactly close by. My only realistic option is driving.
I cannot deal with snow anymore. I did this same drive for two years, then I had an accident and realized I couldn't do that drive anymore, then I transferred to another division that was located in my town. Now they have transferred this division to headquarters, one hour away (same geographic location I was before).
Yes, this area gets quite a bit of snow every year, but it's very unsafe driving on it. There's plenty of hills here and don't ask me why they don't clean the streets properly.
All of this has nothing to do with my not going in today. I didn't go in because the car didn't start. I knew about the snow but I was ready to go in with my laptop and stay at least till I got it set up.
They just called from the garage. I'm leaving now. Wish me luck
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souldoubt
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Post by souldoubt on Feb 8, 2016 13:20:05 GMT -5
If stress and not being able to deal with mistakes get to you then you may be on the wrong career path.
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HoneyBBQ
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Post by HoneyBBQ on Feb 8, 2016 13:20:18 GMT -5
If your car is front wheel drive and has decent tires on it, you will be fine if you drive carefully. I honestly think that you need to get your tail to work ASAP. Waiting until tomorrow is gong to make it worse, and if I was your manager, it would piss me off more. jmho At the lack of sounding non sympathizing, I agree- I've had coworkers not show up to work because of a flat tire or something like their garage door won't go up. Call a cab? Bus? Bike? Have a contingency plan.
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gooddecisions
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Post by gooddecisions on Feb 8, 2016 14:59:22 GMT -5
There are two types of employees- one who takes criticism as an opportunity for improvement and one who gets defensive and disgruntled about it. I reviewed some really sloppy work last week and tried to provide feedback to the employee so she could fix it. She immediately got defensive and argumentative about it, so I got on the phone with her manager. If she had been reasonable, listened to the feedback, corrected the mistakes and was even a little bit decent about it- it wouldn't have needed to be escalated. I heard she got off the phone and was pissed off about it. Maybe the bigwigs don't come to you because you're not easy to give feedback to. Try not to take it so personally.
Also, don't just sit there and listen. Apologize for the error and listen, learn and apply. If you want to be gracious, thank them for catching it and letting you know so that it won't happen again. I promise if you handle it this way, your manager will be okay with you.
Good luck!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2016 18:54:48 GMT -5
I really like you as a poster. You seem like someone who wants to accomplish something and are working hard toward that. I like that you are honest about some of the problems you face. All that to say good luck, I hope it works out well for you.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2016 19:35:30 GMT -5
How did it go Ava?
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obelisk
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Post by obelisk on Feb 8, 2016 20:33:43 GMT -5
Just plug away AVA until your end result. It only matters to the end where you want to be.
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Feb 9, 2016 9:45:43 GMT -5
Please just let us know you travelled safely...
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debthaven
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Post by debthaven on Feb 9, 2016 13:28:01 GMT -5
Ava we are worried about you.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 9, 2016 13:36:23 GMT -5
I'm guessing she's at work and not coming near this place while she's there lol
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andi9899
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Post by andi9899 on Feb 9, 2016 13:41:36 GMT -5
Yeah. It would be a smart move on her part. We're still dying to know!
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