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Managing Sticky Situations at Work

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Her intent with this question was not to invite the other to talk, but toshare her frustr<strong>at</strong>ion.Join Feeling with Fact. Adelaide told Ricky th<strong>at</strong> she valued theirfriendship. She made it clear, however, th<strong>at</strong> she could not continueto have lunch with him if she had to pay for both lunches. She showedappreci<strong>at</strong>ion for his willingness to pay for her lunch today, but she didnot want him to do th<strong>at</strong> as a martyr. Her willingness to begin with aclean sl<strong>at</strong>e opened the door for a resolution th<strong>at</strong> Ricky could particip<strong>at</strong>ein.Resolve the Issue. Because Ricky tends to take advantage of people,he will probably cross the line again. Adelaide must prepare herself forth<strong>at</strong> eventuality. They agreed for him to pay for her lunch today butfrom now on they’d go Dutch. In the future if Ricky has a crisis (nowallet or no credit cards), Adelaide will likely have to confront himagain.As far as etiquette is concerned, when two colleagues e<strong>at</strong> lunchtogether, they split the bill. If you take your subordin<strong>at</strong>e or a clientto lunch, you pay.STICKY SITUATION #23:TRAVELING WITH YOUR BOSS<strong>Sticky</strong> Etiquette <strong>Situ<strong>at</strong>ions</strong> 169Louisa works as an associ<strong>at</strong>e professor of history <strong>at</strong> a major university.Her dean, Dr. Marshall, invited her to <strong>at</strong>tend an<strong>at</strong>ional conference in Texas to deliver a paper with him. Louisais excited about the opportunity to go to this conference. She andDr. Marshall have worked hard to prepare the m<strong>at</strong>erial for thepresent<strong>at</strong>ion. Recently, she learned th<strong>at</strong> she and Dr. Marshallwould travel to Texas together. They will stay in the same hoteland share taxis to get around the city. In all likelihood they wille<strong>at</strong> most of their meals together. Dr. Marshall knows other people<strong>at</strong> the conference, but Louisa knows no one except Dr. Marshall.She worries th<strong>at</strong> she will seem a burden to her dean. She thinkshe will feel oblig<strong>at</strong>ed to introduce her to anyone they meet andwill not wish to leave her on her own. She also worries about howshe will handle certain expenses. Who, for example, pays for thetaxi or tips the driver? Who pays for the meals? Although thedepartment pays for the major expenses, it does not cover drinksor other incidentals. Just because Dr. Marshall is a man and isthe dean, is he required to pay for everything?

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