Too Little Too Late

[Manager #1] was my manager only briefly, as my old boss left suddenly and a new one couldn’t be found for a few months. She didn’t want to manage me, she didn’t value my job or my input, and she made no attempt to hide it.

A new manager was eventually found, but I never forgot how she treated me. I made every attempt to avoid her, and if she wanted my help, she could ask my boss, and then it was low-priority.

Eventually, I found another job with better pay and fewer hours and handed in my resignation. [Manager #1] made several remarks about me not being a loss to the company. But it didn’t affect me; she didn’t matter and her opinion didn’t matter.

On my last day, she came to my desk.

Manager #1: “Here. Just a little something so as not to part on bad terms.”

Me: “Oh, a card… Thanks.”

Manager #1: “Just a little something, you know. Good luck.”

I already had the bin there for the rest of the stuff in my desk, so the card went there, too. A few weeks into my new job, my new manager pulled me aside.

Manager #2: “We had an applicant get through to the shortlist. I think you might know her… [Manager #1]?”

I was far more professional than [Manager #1] deserved, but I was honest and told him how she had behaved on several occasions. She did not get the job.