The moment I realized I was apologizing way too much during work meetings

I was in my weekly team standup at a small marketing firm in Austin, and my boss pulled me aside after. She said I said 'sorry' 12 times in 15 minutes, like for asking a question or even just speaking up. That number hit me hard because I thought I was being polite, but really I was undermining myself. Has anyone else had a boss or friend point out a habit you didnt even notice you had?

2 comments

2 Comments

reese_patel11d ago

Hold up, I gotta push back on this a little. People throw around "undermining yourself" way too much like it's always bad. Maybe saying sorry those 12 times makes you look careful and easy to work with instead of some bulldozer. In a city like Austin where half the meetings are a mix of aggressive startup types and laid-back creatives, being the person who apologizes can actually keep the peace and get stuff done without drama. As long as you don't apologize for breathing, it's not always a weakness.

xenan6411d ago

Does @reese_patel think excessive apologizing could mess with your raises, though?