I never write about my job on this blog, mostly because nothing ever happens that is interesting enough to write about, but something happened today that gave me pause.
My boss and I went downtown to have lunch with two people from an organization we work with. I don't meet in person with clients very often, because they're all over the country, and there's no reason for me to meet them, although my bosses do occasionally. It's fine with me; I don't really like these meetings all that much, because I don't have a whole lot to contribute. These people already know what my part of the process is and what I need from them and what they'll get from me. And the questions they have are all better answered by my boss. I'm left trying to find any relevant comment to throw in just so it won't seem like I'm unfriendly.
Today's meeting wasn't bad, but at the end, something happened. When we were saying goodbye, my boss hugged the clients. She's very outgoing and very huggy, and like I said, she's used to meeting clients and befriending them, so it's totally natural to her. But I am not a hug initiator. I'll return a hug, but I'll rarely start one, especially with someone I just met. So when I saw my boss hug these people, my first thought was, am I supposed to hug them too? It didn't feel natural to me; these are business associates that I'd just met, and I'm not a huggy person. So I shook their hands.
But I am left wondering, how might I have better handled this awkward social situation? Should I have just hugged these people? Would that have been weird? Or was it weird that I just shook their hands after my boss hugged them? I wish there were a rule book for these things.
No comments:
Post a Comment