The Harmless Habits That Are Holding You Back In The Workplace

Some workplace no-nos are more obvious than others. When, for example, a former boss gave me a stern talking-to about wearing earrings that weren’t “corporate enough” (huh?), I felt pretty blindsided. When another boss took me aside to remind me that “9am means 9am” — well, I knew I had that one coming. At work, one person’s amusing quirk can be another’s greatest pet peeve. And while some bad habits (like lying or being mean) are just plain unacceptable, there also exists less-than-ideal conduct (like defensiveness or over-sharing) that seems to walk the line. You may think you’re getting away with these behaviours, but chances are good your boss has noticed.

So what are the sneakiest employee attitudes that are actually more damaging than they seem? We spoke to experienced female supervisors across the country — working in media, HR, tech, small business management, and high-end hospitality and food service — to get their takes. (Spoiler alert: Almost all of these bosses flagged "millennial entitlement" as an attitude that needs addressing — and all but one of them are millennials themselves.)

You may think these habits are harmless, but they’re probably driving your boss up the wall.