This guy’s tale of malicious compliance went viral! He posted on Reddit and told how he eventually got revenge on his boss, who had led him on about a promotion for over two years.
Buckle up, because this is a great tale!
The Story Begins With a Lazy Exec
At their last company, the OP was a marketing executive in a team that included a senior marketing executive.
But the senior executive wasn’t doing much, leaving all the work to the OP!
The Goalposts Kept Moving
They brought it up with their manager, who gave them goals and a timeline to work towards, only to keep moving the goalposts.
This happened not once, not twice, but three times! Talk about a frustrating situation!
He Was Working Diligently
All the while, the OP was working hard to reduce costs and improve the projects they were working on.
And Saving the Firm Thousands
They even started designing everything themselves instead of using an expensive design agency, saving the company a huge $45,000 per year!
What Do You Think?
You’d think that would earn them a promotion, right? Wrong.
He Arranged a Meeting With His Manager
When the OP finally set up another meeting with their manager to discuss a promotion, they showed all the great work they had done to increase profit margins on their projects and all the extra work they had been doing.
She Wasn’t Impressed!
But their manager wasn’t impressed, saying, “just because you make nice things and do extra work doesn’t entitle you to a promotion.”
Can you imagine? All that hard work and dedication just to be brushed off like that.
She’d Strung Him on for Years!
The OP sat there shocked and frustrated; his manager had led him on for two years! She ended the meeting by saying, “but don’t worry, you’ll get there.”
He Wanted Revenge
This entire affair infuriated the OP, so he resolved to get revenge. He decided to take matters into their own hands and stopped doing anything outside their job description.
No more designing everything themselves, no more going above and beyond. And you know what?
The whole team was fine with it because they were all happy to start using the expensive design agency again.
She Noticed Something Amiss
It wasn’t until the next quarterly meeting that the OP’s manager noticed something was off.
The profits per project had drastically dropped, and the manager wanted to know why they were spending so much money.
He’d Been Waiting to Say This
That’s when the OP dropped the bomb and said, “as design is out of my remit, we had to use an agency.” Can you imagine the look on his manager’s face? She was livid!
She Had to Meet the CEO That Week!
They had to present the stats to the CEO that week, and now it looked like they were wasting company money.
The CEO was not happy, to say the least. They ended up yelling at the manager in front of the directors. Talk about embarrassing!
She Wanted to Write Him up but HR Had His Back
The manager tried to give the OP an official warning for sabotaging the team, but HR quickly cleared that up once they realized it wasn’t part of his job description!
That’s right, the OP was just doing what they’d hired him to do – no more, no less.
Or Make Him Sign a New Contract
But it didn’t end there. The manager told the OP they had to sign a new contract with an updated job description. But did the OP cave? No way! He declined that offer too.
He Finally Got What He Deserves
It wasn’t until the manager asked them what it would take to get them to continue running their projects like they used to that the OP mentioned the job title and salary increase they deserved. And begrudgingly, the manager accepted!
Karmic Retribution
After all of this, the OP was worried about their manager being hostile, but then the COVID pandemic hit, and the manager was made redundant. That’s Karma for you!
The OP stayed with the company for another two years before moving on to a much better workplace earlier this year.
And as of today, their former manager is still unemployed. It sounds like justice got served in the end.
We’ve All Felt Like This Guy Before
In the workplace, it’s not uncommon for employees to feel undervalued and overlooked. But what set this guy apart was his determination to fight for what he believed in, even with the odds stacked against him.
And while his story may be unique, his experience is all too relatable for anyone who’s ever felt stuck in a dead-end job!
You Have the Power!
It’s a reminder that sometimes, the only person you can count on to have your back is yourself. And if you’re willing to put in the work and take a stand, you just might come out on top.
So don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself, even if it means causing a little chaos in the process. Who knows? It might just be the push you need to finally get the promotion you deserve!
Reddit users loved this guy’s story. One user said, “I really, really loved your story at first. Then you dropped that final sentence and I had to restrain myself in my desire to start dancing on the spot!”
“Why not drop her a message? Ahw, you’re still looking for work? But don’t worry, you’ll get there.”
How did you find this story? His struggles are all too real, and he fought for what he deserved.
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The post His Boss Lied to Him About a Promotion for Over Two Years, so He Hatched a Brilliant Plan first appeared on Career Step Up.
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / carballo. The people shown in the images are for illustrative purposes only, not the actual people featured in the story.
Source: Reddit