There are certain things all bosses dread to hear. “I lost the account,” “There’s a big mistake,” and “I think the building is on fire,” would all qualify, but I’m talking about sentences that may seem innocuous to you, but can be a big deal to your boss.
Consider each of these sentences — and how you can turn them around to stay on your boss’ good side.
1 “Are you sure you want to do that…?”
You don’t want to come across as teaching your boss something he or she already knows. Tread carefully when schooling your boss on anything. If you feel you have to say something, approach the topic with the assumption that your boss may have overlooked or forgotten something — not that he doesn't know how to do his job.
2 “Did you see what so-and-so just did? She is just so hard to work with!”
Save the interpersonal drama for your friends and family members, because your boss doesn't want to hear about it. He certainly doesn't want you to be a tattle-tale, and he doesn't want to know about how much you dislike your coworkers. Unless someone you work with has made a major violation of company policy, or a big mistake in their work, keep your personal grievances, well, personal.
