Is He Mad At Me?

My boss snapped at me today. I hate when he does that. It makes me hate being at a job that I actually really enjoy. Just those two or three seconds of disrespect can wash away years of great communication and camaraderie. Maybe a less sensitive person can just brush it aside. But I can't. For me, those few seconds stay in my mind and slowly build into rage. That is, if I don't do something about it right away.

I waited about an hour or so and went into his office. I said something light to start a dialogue. He laughed and engaged. Then I just blurted out, "is everything OK between us?" Fortunately, he's used to this kind of question because over the years of working together I've made us "talk it out" any time I've sensed tension or conflict. I know, I'm SUCH a woman (and I mean that in the best possible way)! He assured me that everything was OK and that things with work were just crazy right now. Then I asked him about his daughter, who'd had surgery just a few days ago, and he said softly, "oh, she's fine, thanks. I haven't really seen her in the last few day but I'm going to try and leave early tonight."

My heart sank. I felt so bad for him and his daughter (and guilty for being so mad about a silly thing like a two second gesture). As I'm worrying about my hurt feelings, he's worrying about his little girl who's recuperating from surgery and who he hasn't even been able to see for the last three days because of work. I ended our conversation with another light note about work and how he should definitely leave early.

Perspective. Once you have it, the world looks completely different.