Reprinted from: LeanIn.org
By: Stephanie Taylor Christensen
(This is the final segment in a ten part series from LeanIn.org)
Lesson #10: YOU DISAGREED WITH YOUR BOSS—IN THE OPEN
Let’s say your manager invites you to share a project’s findings at a meeting attended by lots of company bigwigs.
Your presentation goes off without a hitch: The attendees are interested, asking questions, and discussing ideas that may be important to keep the project’s momentum moving forward.
Then your boss makes a proposal but you don’t agree. And you say so. And just like that, the high-energy meeting goes to . . . crickets. You misread the room—and your place in it.
Bottom line: There’s a fine and sometimes ambiguous line between sharing opinions and speaking out of turn.
The Silver Lining Lesson: Learning to edit yourself is a key ingredient in the recipe for professional success. Your way isn’t the only approach—and you can’t always be the star.
When you’ve spoken publicly against your boss, Palmer says damage control is priority number one.
“Explain that you are still getting acclimated to the work world, and you realize that you were wrong to air your differences in a forum like that,” she says. “Then reassure your boss that it will never happen again.”
In the future, if you feel strongly that your suggestion is warranted, wait to bring it up with your boss in a more private setting—and weigh how best to broach the matter.
It’s a long climb up the corporate ladder, and there’s more payoff to being a supportive team player than an always-on self-promoter.
