QUESTION: My supervisor pulled me into her office and told me that a document I had written for her was “no good.” When I read the version she wanted me to use, I saw that her document actually was the document I sent her with a few added paragraphs. I get the need to edit, truly, but I don't get why she'd call my document “no good” but proceed to use my material.
ANSWER: This is hard to answer without knowing what was in those “few added paragraphs.” It may be that your spelling, grammar and other details were flawless, but the body of your work was missing some vital organs. Perhaps your information was complete, but your supervisor's additions gave it context and polish. Perhaps you weren't clear on what you were supposed to achieve, thanks to a lack of experience or guidance. Or you may be dealing with someone who doesn't know the difference between editing and imposing her own idiosyncratic preferences.
Try to figure out how the added paragraphs improved the final product; if you can't, ask your supervisor to spell out what wasn't working so you'll know better next time.
In short, try not to take the “no good” label too literally or personally. Treat it as a less-than-diplomatic choice of words from someone who may know what's “good” but who lacks the ability or patience to articulate why. Then see if you can't still learn something from that person. Even if it seems all you're learning is how to deliver what the boss wants, that in itself is a valuable career skill - at least until you're in a position to make your own idiosyncratic preferences the standard.
And while you can probably count yourself lucky if “no good” is the harshest critique you encounter in your career, you should know that broad scorched-earth criticism - This is horrible; this belongs in the trash - is as often a sign of a bad guide as a bad product. A good mentor flags flaws, furnishes fixes and forgoes the flogging.
Washington Post
* Miller has written for and edited tax publications for 16 years, most recently for the accounting firm KPMG's Washington National Tax office. You can find her on Twitter, @KarlaAtWork. She writes an advice column on navigating the modern workplace.