“We're a family here".. What are the most common manipulative phrases used in your workplace?

[Anonymous]

I hear "We're family" a LOT. It's almost comical. I thought bosses would know better than to out themselves with this one in 2023.

Another big one I hear all the time is..... "it'll be an opportunity for growth."

What this REALLY means is "I'm putting you in a sh!tty situation you won't enjoy, but oh well, you'll get used to it."

You?

[Anonymous]

There’s no “I” in team. Group think isn’t always best. Companies want worker bees who don’t question status quo.

[Anonymous]

What did you do last weekend? Tell me about your vacation. What did you do on your day off? What's your kids/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend's name? Where do you live? etc.


Any prying questions about family or how you spent your personal time are manipulative imo because they're meant to create a fake sense of camaraderie. That goes double if it's coming from a higher up.

[Anonymous]

Apparently to "be a team player" or "being a part of the team", means being willing to take on additional work that is outside of your job description because somebody else doesn't know how or doesn't want to manage their own work load AND/OR somebody quit and they aren't being productive in finding a replacement.

[Anonymous]

Ha! The “family” workplace is code for toxic. I was at SXSW last month and sat in on this “Work Appropriate” podcast where this was the very topic of discussion. It’s a great listen:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/work-appropriate/id1649385546?i=1000604259857

[Anonymous]

My boss blames equity whenever they say no to something. As in it wouldn’t be equitable to allow one person to XYZ. Meanwhile they say yes to their buddies all the time and nothing about the workplace is equitable in terms of workload or expectations. It’s frustrating to say the least.

[Anonymous]

"I/we appreciate you" wtf? Are u gonna give me a milk bone treat and a pat on the head


"Circling back on this" I didn't beat you to death with this very (minor)error that I found. Let's go back at it one more time, but this time with more witnesses copied on the email.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Apparently to "be a team player" or "being a part of the team", means being willing to take on additional work that is outside of your job description because somebody else doesn't know how or doesn't want to manage their own work load AND/OR somebody quit and they aren't being productive in finding a replacement.

+1

PP but this drives me crazy. Especially when we are individually evaluated in terms of keeping our jobs or getting bonuses. But when you want someone to write this extra twenty page report? We are a team!

[Anonymous]

You all are a bunch of whiny jerks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

"I/we appreciate you" wtf? Are u gonna give me a milk bone treat and a pat on the head


"Circling back on this" I didn't beat you to death with this very (minor)error that I found. Let's go back at it one more time, but this time with more witnesses copied on the email.

You don’t want to know you’re appreciated? Wondering about your age. Boomer? Older Gen X?

You’d probably like my old boss who said a paycheck is thanks enough and you shouldn’t expect anything else.

[Anonymous]

I hate when supervisors/managers give you an unrealistic task or deadline and then insincerely say “let me know if there is anything I can do to help”, knowing darn well they have no intention or desire to do that.

[Anonymous]

More with less.

[Anonymous]

Our ED insists that at our org "we hire for nice." Meanwhile, she is the least nice person I have ever encountered and drives people to quit over and over again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What did you do last weekend? Tell me about your vacation. What did you do on your day off? What's your kids/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend's name? Where do you live? etc.


Any prying questions about family or how you spent your personal time are manipulative imo because they're meant to create a fake sense of camaraderie. That goes double if it's coming from a higher up.

This is a weird, unhealthy way to think.

[Anonymous]

My company got acquired last year, and the new leadership loves to talk about “grit”, which basically means powering through their lack of proper processes for anything we need to get done. Not to mention the 0% raises the majority of us got, while they spent over $100m on naming rights for a stadium. I hate these people.