May 23, 2012

The next problem: Why does my weakness matter?

I’ve just been asked such a feeble clichéd question – but still it took me unawares. What is the right answer to it?

May 23, 2012

Should I speak out about jargon?

The use of such phrases is creating a culture in which talking utter gibberish is the only way to show that you ‘see the bigger picture’

May 9, 2012

Do I have to hire a woman?

I chair the nominations committee of a large company in a male-dominated area

Apr 25, 2012

Should I ban staff meetings?

I keep telling people that this is not an efficient use of anyone’s energy

Apr 11, 2012

Must I be ‘mousy’ to succeed?

A colleague told me I am ‘too bold to make it to the top’

Mar 28, 2012

Do I take my husband’s name?

My surname is Smith and my first name is one short syllable

Mar 14, 2012

Why is success held against me?

I am looking for a job in finance but keep on getting turned down on the grounds that I am ‘overqualified’

Feb 28, 2012

Is making people cry always bad?

I pride myself on my skills as a coach, mentor and leader, but at a recent industry seminar I let slip that I had made colleagues tear-up

Feb 15, 2012

Is the health of a PA less valuable than that of CEO?

A week in a health club would help me recover from the stresses of work

Feb 1, 2012

Should I have a hair transplant?

Although most of this is about personal vanity, there is also a work angle. I work for a media company, where the accent is on youth

Jan 18, 2012

Do I cut subsidised food or gym?

The first is enjoyed by more members of staff while the second is an important plank of our wellness policy

Jan 3, 2012

Can I change upper class, white male corporate culture?

Our British parent company has no women in senior positions and the only two openly gay managers left last year

Dec 21, 2011

Will Botox pay for itself?

I can’t help noticing that I am looking much older than a lot of my peers, all of whom have had work done. Is it a good investment?

Dec 7, 2011

Do I resign over CEO’s high pay?

Even though the company is performing very well, the amounts paid to top execs seem excessive

Nov 23, 2011

Do I protest against my banker son?

I am wondering if should I be a protester or supporter of his profession in the eye of the storm

Nov 9, 2011

How do I help my job-seeking daughter?

She has just left university with a first in English and has applied to more than 100 jobs but has got only two interviews

Oct 26, 2011

Do I consider a new deputy’s private life?

Apart from his bad track record with spouses, he is bright and charismatic

Oct 12, 2011

Should I get off the aircraft?

Our pilot was educating us on his airline’s core values, boasting that the most important is passenger safety

Sep 28, 2011

Must I swim slower than my boss?

When we are swimming side by side, he keeps trying – and failing – to overtake me

Sep 14, 2011

Do I lie about my boss to his boss?

I get along with them in a superficial way but plan to outlast them both

Dear Lucy

Dear Lucy Lucy Kellaway, FT columnist and associate editor, offers her solution to your workplace problems in a fortnightly column in the Financial Times. In this weekly online edition of her 'agony aunt' column, readers are invited to have a say too.

E-mail Lucy your problems to problems@ft.com

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