One Plucky Blog

Performance reviews are opportunities to listen to one another and mutually define future success. How does the company see you? And how do you see yourself?

I recently started a new job as a manager and several of my team members are previous coworkers… as I am new to management, I really don’t know if that is an old way of thinking and I don’t want to make a critical mistake. What do you think?

My coworker is sometimes rude to me in email and personal interactions. My boss is aware that this is the case (and agrees she is rude) but does not take steps to stop the behavior. Is there anything I can do to discourage her from treating me badly?

Some people have fully lived their lifecycle in their current environment. Things have run their course and you have pruned, supported and done enough. When your employee has gone to flower and they’re ready to move on, departures are welcome on all ends.

Dear Plucky, There are a variety of junior employees on my team. It’s been a joy to mentor them, but I’ve noticed that they interpret feedback in a very different way than I do. A small dose of constructive feedback can lead to a tailspin of anxiety, negative self-talk or even tears. Often, these conversations…

  Dear Plucky, A human disappointed me today. What should I do? Love, Everyone — — — Dear Everyone, Oh, friend. Want to come sit for a few minutes? Let’s walk over here to this bench, the one that overlooks some nature. I like looking at nature when I’m having trouble with humans. Nature has…

  “So what’s #PluckyWomen?” I was standing at the bar, ready to order. I looked up from the drink menu at the dude next to me and in that second a song started playing over the speakers — the song I listen to when I’m writing big SOWs or prepping ambitious new pitches. Maybe it…

My son’s beloved preschool teacher unexpectedly quit before Christmas. We live in an expensive area of the country and, understandably, it turns certain industries into revolving doors of employment. Who can live in the Bay Area on small salaries? Not many. Though this is a really logical problem, her departure was a total shock to…

In my first job out of college, I worked for a non-profit school. As part of my role I had to produce a quarterly newsletter that would be mailed to all 500 families. This meant that once a quarter, I picked up boxes (upon boxes) of the newsletter at our printer, labeled big envelopes and…

I coach employed people all week. I also coach employers. And all those hours of human talking has led me to a fundamental belief about the nature of employment: individuals and companies are like two sides of a plastic Easter egg. Healthy companies use managers to pay attention to the way they CLICK. (Stay with…

Dear Plucky, I’ve been waiting for a promotion for a long time and keep getting passed up, but my manager says I’m doing great. Should I just ask directly for the promotion? Is this seen as too self-centered? Thank you, Stuck but Ambitious ———– Heya Stuck, I’m picturing you in a holding pattern, like planes…