I’ve talked before about the potential career doom that saying “That’s not my job” or “I can’t help you” can bring.

Here’s another one. Note: The co-worker in this case had been in the office for at least an hour.

Me: “Could you tell me—”
Co-worker B: “I don’t know anything, I just got in.”

Gotta love the unaccountability there!

What have you heard lately that makes you just cringe (or wonder how some people stay employed)?

There are two things you should never say at work. Okay, there are a LOT of things you should never say at work, but two of them make my skin crawl when I hear them:

“I can’t help you with that.”

“That’s not my job.”

Newsflash: It’s never okay to say either of those two statements when someone is asking you for help. That’s called career suicide.

Continue reading →