by Kat
December 20, 2011
Coffee Break
Where to start? I’ll start many moons ago, in college, which was the last time I drank boxed wine. (And even then I only used the wine as a component of punch.) Cut to a few weeks ago at Thanksgiving, when my aunt — quite the oenophile — showed up at the family party with a Bota Box. We thought it was a gag until we tasted it: it was really good! The eco-friendly box houses the equivalent of four (count ‘em, four) bottles of the award-winning wine — so when I saw it at my local Brooklyn liquor store I had to rub my eyes: was the price really $22? Wow. I’d bring it to a friend’s party, yes in part as a gag gift, but also as a great value for a tasty wine. The Bota Box website has more information on where it’s sold.
(L-0)
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by Kat
December 20, 2011
Business Etiquette
Reader J wonders whether she should complain about her rude and dismissive boss when quitting:
I will be giving my notice to quit my current job within the next couple of weeks, and I’m struggling with how much to say. On the one hand, I don’t want to burn any bridges. I have good relationships with almost everyone I work with, and I want to preserve those relationships. On the other hand, there is one partner who I work for that is disrespectful, rude and dismissive, and he is the main reason I’m leaving. Are people generally honest about that type of thing when they quit and do you recommend that I say something? Or do most people stick with a stock line – e.g., I learned a lot here but I got a great new opportunity.
We got into this a bit when we talked about how to resign gracefully, but I’m curious what the hivemind is on this one: should you tell employers the reason you’re quitting? (Pictured: Quitting time (lomo variant), originally uploaded to Flickr by greg.turner.)
I’m going to stick with my gut here and say you should resign with a smile and keep your lips sealed regarding any bad working situations. My guess is you’re not going to accomplish anything by it, and you may tarnish your own reputation by saying something. If the hiring office (or whoever takes your exit interview) knows about Person X’s attitude, then you’re not telling them anything new. And if they don’t know about Person X’s attitude, they will most likely chalk it up to a “personality conflict,” and leave it at that. And realistically, from a senior management perspective, they probably don’t care about Person X’s attitude — as long as Person X can bring in clients/money/do his job well, they don’t really care how he treats his underlings.
Furthermore, by mentioning negatives at your exit interview you may come off as a whiner. I say, leave with a smile, with as much good will as you can — you never know what you may want from the firm in the future (good recommendations, connections — perhaps even from Person X).
Readers, what do you think — have you mentioned bad experiences in your exit interviews? How were you received?
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Oooh: I’m digging this interesting silk blouse by Julie Haus. Now, The Outnet has an artistic-sounding description involving words like “digital-print florals” and “spliced mirror-image patterns” that sounds a bit like it came out of a museum catalog. Me? I just think it’s gorgeous and kind of ghostly. It was $315, but is now marked to $126 (limited sizes only, alas). Julie Haus Galena Printed Silk Top
on Amazon: my camera! I got the Canon S95 a few months ago (gift from my parents) and have loved it so far — it’s easy to point and click, takes quality pictures, and has fun features (such as allowing you to set it up so it will take the picture when someone winks, or only when someone’s smiling). Although it’s tempting to just rely on my cell phone to take pictures (particularly of my son), I always regret it when it’s time to create a photo book — the quality with the camera pictures is so, so much higher. The Canon S95 is normally $399, but it’s $229 today at Amazon (and eligible for free one-day shipping.) 
