The Silent 'U' In Team

'How are we doing with that report?' Officespeak. It's the stuff we say in the work place when we momentarily lose the skills to speak English.

This is one of my personal favourites and it happens every time we refer to the group of us instead of to the person we're actually addressing. Obvious responsibility is extracted and replaced with obscurity masked as teamwork. Other examples include 'Have we managed to find out where the discrepancies came from?', or 'Do we think we'll make the deadline we've been given?' There's the suggestion of joint responsibility, but don't be fooled - you're still The Man.

It's almost as if the Asker has been involved in something all along but has now forgotten the status of everything and has approached you to help them remember. They're almost referring to themselves in the third person, and a forgetful third person at that. The Asker lacks the confidence to ask a direct question so they soften and mask it in such a way that you feel like you're on a team for a split second. Until you realise that you're still completely responsible and the only involvement of the Asker is to ask confusing questions, apparently. 'What do we think the reason for the issue is?' Despite the suggestion that both parties are solving a problem, there is not usually an opportunity to respond with 'Since we're both thinking about this in concert, why don't you give me your take first.' This would usually be inappropriate.

[If you have an image of Bill Lumbergh from Office Space in your head right now, coffee mug in hand, I wouldn't be surprised.]

It's important to appreciate at this point that there are many well-meaning, concerned managers who lack the self confidence and relative aggressiveness that is sometimes required. The intention of this post is not to create resentment between you and them, but rather to help us all avoid confusion and be the model employees which we need to be.

'Would it be possible for us to work late tonight?' There are layers within this one. On the surface it sounds like the fake teamwork thing which turns out to be a masked direct question, which you'd identify quite swiftly if you'd read this post, but then you realise it's not even a question. It's a statement about what's expected. So, you'd be about to respond with 'Sure, I've been hoping for an evening with you instead of my family..' when you realise that not only will the Asker not necessarily be in the building but that the question was rhetorical. Previous learnings about teamwork and actual responsibility almost prepare you for this one.

Be vigilant folks. These people need our support, and understanding them is the first step.