My boss: Spreading the bad news

Posted by Dan

December 16, 2008 |

I’m fortunate in that the majority of my income comes from freelance writing. However, I do have one full-time/part-time editing job. I’m the managing editor of a real estate trade magazine.

Now, just two years ago, it was fun to be the editor of a real estate-focused magazine. Everyone was making big bucks, whether they were selling houses or shopping centers. Today? It’s not quite as much fun. Today, real estate agents are dropping out of the business every day. Shopping centers are sitting unfinished. And houses? They’re not selling.

My boss at this job is in full panic mode. Of course, advertising has dropped off significantly in our magazine. That’s to be expected when the market suffers as it is now. But my boss has the annoying habit of sending to every staff member every single e-mail message from a longtime advertiser who has decided to pull out for, say, the first three months of 2009.

These messages have been coming quickly as of late. And I can’t think of a single positive thing that my boss is accomplishing by sending them to his writers, columnists, editors, sales personnel and production staffers. All these messages do, in my opinion, is drag down morale and reinforce the general attitude of gloom-and-doom that’s already hanging around the office.

These are tenuous times for everyone. Having a boss throwing that in your face day after day certainly doesn’t help. So, if you are a boss and you are reading this, remember this advice: Keep the bad news to yourself. Try spreading some hope, instead.

Comments

2 Comments so far

Zoey Jordan on December 16, 2008 4:15 pm
I’d agree that this doesn’t make for excellent management practices. Managers should provide motivation, solutions, and Plan B’s to their staffers. Perhaps his own fear is causing the behavior, as uninspired as it is. Ah, why does work have to feel like work?
Dan on December 16, 2008 11:09 pm
Hi, Zoey:

Thanks for stopping by. Yes, it is unfortunate that work so often feels like work. I’m spoiled, though; I’m rarely in the office. When I am in, I realize just how lucky I am to work mostly from home.

Dan
http://workfromhomecouple.today.com
http://community.enormo.com/blog