Shooting the Messenger

Fresh out of college at the tender age of 21, I landed my first job in sales. Part of the job involved wearing a suit, which my very demanding boss made sure we did regardless of triple digit temperatures or negative wind chill factors. About six months into my job a new baby-faced college grad came on board and assumed that a business professional dress code meant she could wear Doc Martens with her skirt suits. Needless to say, her shoe selection didn't quite fit with the image our company wished to project.

Playing the role of good cop, my boss demanded that I tell this new hire that her Doc Martens were not appropriate work shoes. It was a crazy position to put me in, especially since this girl's shod foot didn't effect my sales efforts a single bit. However, my boss was flat out scary, and I really didn't want to disappoint her by wussing out. For the next few days I wondered what I could possibly say to my colleague in order to tell her that her shoes were hideous without coming across as an asshole.

"Um....our boss wanted me to tell you that we are not allowed to wear Doc Martens"
"Dude, those shoes look ridiculous. Don't you own loafers?"
"Your shoes are flat out against this company's dress code!".

Since I couldn't figure out to tell her tactfully, I held off on telling her anything. A few days later something miraculous happened: my colleague came in wearing appropriate shoes. My response:

"Wow! I love your shoes! They go with your suit perfectly. You should wear shoes like that more often!".

The result? My colleague loved the compliments, my boss got what she wanted, and I got my point across. Sure the girl quit about three months later, but those Doc Martens never again graced the office carpets.

The moral of the story: it's not what you say, it's how you say it. Just one more way to spread love this Valentine's Day.