Written Up for “Teamwork” — Now What?

If you’ve ever been written up for “poor performance” or “not being a team player” — especially over tasks that were never in your job description — this one’s for you.

What should you do? Apologize, take your boss’s advice, and be a team player. Bosses hate the “I don’t have time” excuse. They hate it because no one has the time, and you’re not special. Event setup was a responsibility given to you because your boss felt that you were able to do it — therefore it became part of your job. Don’t argue with that, you’re just going to lose.

Having said that, the reason you join a team is to accomplish some greater goal together. If your boss could do it alone, you wouldn’t be there. Adding to that, if you could do it all alone, you would be the boss. You aren’t expected to sacrifice yourself for the team, you are expected to play your part.

Ok, now that we’ve defined terms, let’s look at how you can fix your problem. Start by redefining the issue. If everyone agrees that these events are critical, then everyone has a duty to make sure they are a success. Ask some questions. For example:

• Why is the burden on you alone?
• Are you missing equipment that makes set-up slow?
• Is organization a factor?
• Can you write up a plan that would make this work better?

Are you following me? Your boss is looking for you to be a team player, and your part of the team is to make sure these events go well. Event coordination isn’t just about setting up tables and ordering catering, it’s about making sure all the parts that go into the event are taken care of.

So, if you need a standing order with a caterer, if you need bodies to haul in tables and chairs, if you need the projector stored in a different place, write them down in a plan to present to your boss.

Please don’t take offense to this, but you weren’t written up because you were doing your job badly, you were written up because you weren’t able to manage your team and your responsibilities.

Your boss failed you because she didn’t set her expectations properly — probably because she never thought of it that way. Take a deep breath, and rationally think about how you can make these events less painful. Write them down. Be specific.

Then go to your boss and say:

“I’m sorry, I misunderstood the assignment. These events are taking up too much of my time. Here is my plan to make them more efficient. Can you help me execute the plan?”

That’s the moment you stop arguing about the write-up and start leading the work.