My new manager did this to me recently in a group meeting. Luckily, I have a thick skin and I'm sure he was just awkwardly trying to fit in.
Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
291–300 of 461 posts
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#292The basic rule of comedy, or making jokes, which is amateur comedy, is that you always punch up. It’s funny when you say “ha! you’re fired!” to your boss, but never when you say it to someone you can actually fire. Same reason why parents (should) never joke about punishment or disciplinary action with their kids - when you have power and authority you also have a responsibility not to belittle it. People will take y…
I know you're specifying amateur comedy, but it's not so clear what's up or down. A lot of people think Dave Chappelle punches down, but is he really?[1] "Comedy is subjective, and it's offensive, it really is. And people are making these imaginary rules, like, 'Comedy can punch up, but it can't punch down.' No, comedy punches down too sometimes, sorry. You don't make up the rules for my business without consulting a…
Interesting point. Chapelle can hardly punch anywhere, but down at this point with the amount of success he has had.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#293that really needs to be advised though? I remember trying to introduce "the office" to my parents and dying of embarrassment cause one of the first jokes is Michael jokingly firing Pam. I was a lot simpler when I watched that show.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#294The basic rule of comedy, or making jokes, which is amateur comedy, is that you always punch up. It’s funny when you say “ha! you’re fired!” to your boss, but never when you say it to someone you can actually fire. Same reason why parents (should) never joke about punishment or disciplinary action with their kids - when you have power and authority you also have a responsibility not to belittle it. People will take y…
Don't know if I agree with "never" punching down, but I wanted to share a poignant example of what punching down poorly looks like: https://twitter.com/davejorgenson/status/1269288466493341696 Wayne Brady and Aisha Taylor handled this extremely well, but I'm glad he stood his ground and didn't smile and laugh along, despite the situational pressure to.
Not even sure that's an example of punching down. Highlighting the absurdity of 'fits the description' is punching the system, is it not?
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#295Earlier quoted context omitted.
What's a 'protected class of worker'? I'm aware of 'protected characteristics', but they cut both ways, not something you can be or not be.
> What's a 'protected class of worker'? > I'm aware of 'protected characteristics', but they cut both ways, not something you can be or not be. The legal term of art is “protected class” and not all of them cut both ways (age over 40, disability, and veteran status are all one-sided protected classes.)
Ok, well I suppose it should have been obvious this varies with jurisdiction.
In mine, it is indeed 'characteristics', and it is 'age', not 'over 40'.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#296My last job featured a chatbot with a !fire command that will summarily inform the channel that blah has been fired, for the nth time, and manager that commonly used it on people as much as software or servers.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#297In a broader sense, humor that punches down never really works, even if the person using it has the best intentions. The examples in the article are useful because they're clearly intended to defuse tension, not to punch down or make anyone feel bad, but it just doesn't work. It's an example of how hard it is to intuitively see things from other people's perspectives. We interpret and judge ourselves from the inside looking out, but we (and some people in particular) look way different from the outside looking in and understanding the difference is a lifelong effort.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#298Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's nothing subtle about that kind of behavior. Contemptible, yes, but not subtle.
You could call it transparency. It's vastly better to have someone make you aware of what's up than blindside you or gaslight you by giving contradictory information/demands.
It's still gaslighting if you are threatening to fire people but not actually firing anyone.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#299Sadly some companies joke with firing people. For example, announcing layoffs soon but delay actual execution by weeks. So people actually resigned by pure stress.
Re: Advice to new managers: don't joke about firing people
#300https://www.npr.org/transcripts/807758704
> demonstrated how people are often oblivious to the power that they have over others
Not just managers...