So my new boss yelled at me for using the wrong color highlighter

I started this job at a small accounting office in Omaha about 3 weeks ago and my boss is a total control freak. Today I was marking up some tax documents with a yellow highlighter like I always do at my desk. He walks by, snatches it out of my hand and goes "we only use pink highlighters here, yellow is for the interns." I didn't even know that was a rule. He made me go to the supply closet and swap it out in front of everyone. Meanwhile the same guy leaves coffee cups all over the break room for days. Has anyone else had a boss micromanage stupid stuff like highlighter colors but ignore real messes?

2 comments

2 Comments

drew96525d ago

Wait, did you read that article about how some bosses have "power rituals" where they make you do weird stuff just to show they're in charge? lol Pink highlighters for the "real" employees and yellow for interns sounds exactly like that. I saw this whole thing online about how micromanaging tiny stuff like highlighter colors is actually a way for insecure managers to feel important. Meanwhile they leave coffee cups everywhere because in their mind, that's "beneath" them and is someone else's problem. It's pretty wild how they'll treat a highlighter like it's the end of the world but act blind to actual messes and problems that affect real work. Honestly, I'd start keeping a log of all his weird rules versus the stuff he ignores, just in case things get worse and HR needs to see a pattern.

elizabeth90024d ago

Wait, is this real @drew965? Like, do you really think he's doing this on purpose to mess with people? Because I've been trying to figure out if my boss even realizes how ridiculous he sounds, or if he's just clueless about everything. The pink vs. yellow thing feels so random, like there's gotta be some story behind it that nobody knows about. Have you ever actually seen one of those "power ritual" bosses change their ways when someone calls them out, or do they just double down? Curious if keeping that log you mentioned would actually help or just make things worse.

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