It can often be awkward and even embarrassing when your supervisor makes a painfully obvious mistake in front of a client. Though you pick up on the mistake, you may feel intimidated in letting your boss know that something he or she said wasn’t correct.
I recently wrote an email to several people on my creative team, more specifically my web team. My intention was to send out a succinct email that was easy-to-read but accomplished a lot. After proofing it, I sent it off. Within a few minutes I received an email back.
More or less, the gist of this email was telling me that I had used a technically term wrong–very wrong. Now let me be honest, I know very few technical terms when it comes to coding and web development. I barely squeak by. Apparently, what I wrote in the email meant something completely different in web-speak than what I actually wanted it to say. Fortunately, this member of my creative team had the courage to send me a tactfully written, well thought out email, letting me know that my word choice was not the best for this particular situation. Additionally, he went on to describe the proper terms to use in the future.
Some of you may be taken aback by the fact that someone would write an email that in essence says, “You’re wrong” to their boss. However, this team member knew that it was in my best interest to say the right thing instead of writing an email that seemed uneducated. In his email, he was careful to be respectful while helping me improve!
Everyone needs to learn, including the people at the very top! A good leader can educate, but an exceptional leader is educable. The person that sent me that instructional email stepped-up and helped me out! Don’t be afraid to respectfully educate your boss. In the end, he or she will probably be thankful!