Say Something

Where does bitterness come from? Why do I just feel like breaking my boss’ head? Have you ever felt bad that you said some hurtful things to someone you cared a lot about? Teju did the same thing too. She just quit her job and missed an opportunity to head the new branch of Starje Nigeria. Let’s see how it happened?

“I can’t take it anymore! I just hate coming to this place every day and deceiving myself that I am happy. Nothing I do is appreciated, even if I draw my blood out, nobody will notice. See this jargon called my appraisal, I quit!” She stormed out.

Up until 3 months ago, Teju had a great relationship with her boss Mrs. Igure. As the administrative manager, Teju never liked to disappoint Mrs. Igure and she always put her 110% best effort in every task assigned to her. She was managing the company relocation project and even with the tough work load she maintained the same level of commitment until something happened.

When the relocation started and offices were to be allocated to management staff, it was to Teju’s shock and surprise that she found out she had been given the smallest personal office of all the managers at her level. Even Charles, the training manager who joined only last month had a bigger office than her. She was gutted, she just could not fathom why Mrs. Igure would take her for granted so much. “Is it that all the work I am doing is not appreciated? Oh! Because I am gentle right?” As the days rolled by into weeks, she became discouraged, she was not applying herself as much as she used to, and for the first time in a very long while, she got a bad appraisal. That was when she lost it and quit!

Mrs. Igure on the other hand, has a different story to tell

As at 3 Months ago. Teju was one of her most dedicated staff who she valued highly. The thing she appreciated the most about Teju was that her work was always showed a passion for excellence and that she had such a positive attitude to work. Teju had changed in the past few months and Mrs. Igure was worried. “Maybe she is planning to move to another company.  I hope not”. She asked Teju once or twice if everything was okay, but didn’t get a clear response so she concluded that it could be a personal matter. After a while it got out of hand. “What is this Teju? This is below par and you know it! Should I be expected to accept this level of performance from you of all people?” This continued until the end of the quarter.

After the quarterly appraisal Mrs. Igure called Teju into her office. “Teju, this is the first time I have scored you poorly since you joined us 5 years ago and I need to know why you did so badly? I expect so much from you and I hope this serves as a jolt to make you do your best from now on.” Teju saw her appraisal and lost it. “What! I can’t take it anymore! I just hate coming to this place every day and deceiving myself that I am happy. Nothing I do is appreciated, even if I draw my blood out, nobody will notice. See this jargon called my appraisal, I quit!” She stormed out.

Mrs. Igure: “Teju come back. What is the meaning of this!”

Teju: “I quit oh! Let the special people who deserve recognition and accolades stay, I have better things to do with my life!” After all I don’t even deserve thank you, well done and so on. After 5 years of my life have gone down the drain for this useless company, I am being treated like trash, I even have the smallest office.

Mrs. Igure was in shock but she calmed herself down, and said slowly, “Do you want to know why you got the smaller office? Is that what this is about?” Without waiting for a response she continued “I am going to show you a letter which I planned to give you 2 months ago, I held on to it because of your sudden lack of dedication and the drop in the quality of your work. Certainly with this outburst of yours you are no longer eligible for it. Just read it and leave.” She handed over a letter from her drawer to her, and when Teju read the first paragraph, she could not hold back the stinging tears…

…

It is a pleasure to inform you that in recognition of your hard work and dedication to Starje Nigeria, you have been promoted to the position of Managing Director – Starge Norway where you will serve as the pioneer staff. We know that this is both a great opportunity and a great challenge but we are confident …

THE END!

Sometimes, the biggest problems our hindering progress are the things we think we understand and yet we have no idea about.

If something is annoying, discouraging or disturbing you, don’t let bitterness take root. Don’t wait until you cannot help but explode. Here are my two words for you:

If you are hurt by a harmless gesture, try to get over it, if you cannot…Express yourself

If you are getting mixed signals and you can’t understand what a person wants…Clarify Issues

If you want something and your non-verbal clues are not working…Speak Clearly

Man can see other planets with a telescope but there is no mindoscope to accurately read thoughts. If something is going wrong and you can do something about it, don’t just stand there…

Say Something!

How do you approach difficult topics with lecturers, bosses or parents? Let’s talk about it. Post a Comment