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I started telling my boss what I was working on before he could ask
For about six months, I felt like I was always getting interrupted with 'what's the status on X?' right when I was in the middle of something. It was killing my focus. I saw a tip online about sending a quick, three-bullet email every Friday afternoon with what I finished that week, what I'm starting next, and any blockers. I thought it sounded like extra work, but I tried it for two weeks. My boss actually replied after the second one saying 'got it, thanks, keep it up' and the random check-ins dropped by like 80%. It turns out he just wanted to know I was on track without having to chase me down. It took maybe five minutes to write and saved me a ton of stress. Has anyone else found a simple update trick that actually worked with their manager?
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paule531mo ago
Sounds like you just trained your boss to expect free extra work. Those five minute emails add up over a year, and now that's just part of your job. You solved his problem of managing by making more work for yourself. He should be able to trust you without a weekly report, or he should check the project tracker like everyone else. This just creates a paper trail that can be used against you if you ever miss a week or forget a detail.
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aliceg614d ago
paule53 you can't be serious. Man writes a 5 minute email and you're acting like he signed over his firstborn child. The time he saves not getting derailed by constant check-ins way more than makes up for those few minutes. And @oscarb71 is spot on, this is just basic communication. If your boss is gonna use a "paper trail" against you for missing a week or a tiny detail, that's a trust problem that would show up either way, not something caused by a simple update email.
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