bettyroberts•21d agoProlific Poster

Finally spoke up in a meeting after 3 years of staying quiet, got a totally unexpected response

I work in a small office, about 15 people, and I've always been the one who just nods and takes notes. Last Tuesday during our weekly check in, I finally mentioned that the way we file our client paperwork was wasting about 2 hours of my week. My boss actually stopped the whole meeting and asked me to show everyone the problem. Now we are switching to a shared digital folder system next month and I got a thank you from the team. Has anyone else found that mentioning a small frustration turned into a bigger change than you expected?

2 comments

2 Comments

stellanelson21d ago

Actually read something in a psychology blog recently about how workplaces often have unspoken rules about who gets to speak up. It said that when someone who's usually quiet finally talks, people pay way more attention because it breaks the pattern. Makes sense with your story. Your boss probably realized if you were bothered enough to say something after three years, it must be a real problem worth fixing. That shared digital folder thing sounds like a perfect example of a tiny change that saves everyone headaches.

logan_young2921d agoMost Upvoted

Buddy of mine spoke up after two years and suddenly got his own project lead role.