How should you calm yourself when you are worried about your boss's reaction at work tomorrow?

Question

I put together a schedule for my boss on Monday and sent it to him. He did not review it and took it at face value.

Well, today the auditors found a mistake in it. I forgot to include something in the schedule.

My boss used my schedule to prepare another statement.

I sent him the revised schedule before I left work today.

I am worried about his reaction tomorrow. He has a bad temper and cusses sometimes.

I don't want to be called in and be fired also. I have been with the company for 4 months now.

I feel bad about the error, but found it strange that no one reviewed my work.

I am nervous and don't know how to calm myself. How should I react when and if he calls me in tomorrow? This happened last week also.

Answer 1

If it's a big issue for him I would think he would have called you in by now. All you can do is reason your self to calm down right now.  You recognized your made an error, and since he didn't review your work all you can do now is tell yourself you won't do this again.  I would suggest not expecting your boss to review your work, he obviously hired you to handle this, if he reviews it he might as well do this himself.  If it bothers you that much you can always ask to speak w/him. Tell him you realized you made this error and your terribly sorry for the mistake, and that it won't happen again.  Maybe you can suggest to him that you would feel more comfortable if you can review his schedule w/him each morning or once a week. So there is no future oversights.  If you don't want to draw attention then let it go and see if he says anything, then present your case.  Until then just make sure you work out a system to check your work.  Don't be afraid to be proactive and make suggestions if you feel something could make a process run smoother.  Also, you mentioned your boss has a temper, he probably has what is called a dominant personality - this means he wants results and answers, not explanations and errors upset him greatly, I'm telling you this because to work successfully in a work environment you need to know how to communicate w/people and when you understand there personality, you know how to properly respond - so for him he wants facts, answers, and work done w/o error. So keep your answers to facts, answer exactly what he asks; say he says did you send out those mailings yet, you should respond yes, or they will be out before the end of today, not I haven't yet we had other things come up...all he will hear is blah blah blah she didn't get the job done.  If he calls you out on error apologize and have a fix already done.  To learn more a good book to read is I'm Stuck, You're Stuck: Breakthrough to Better Work Relationships and Results by Discovering your DiSC Behavioral Style.  It's a great easy fast read that will help your work better, and you will feel more confident and you won't have restless nights like today.  Hope this helps.  

Human Resource Recruiter/Training & Development

Answer 2

i know it's easier said than done stareyes, but at least get a good night rest to prepare for your day in the office tomorrow.  what's the worst he can do to you?  fire you right?  but don't worry.  i don't think your boss will do that.

i feel your pain because i've been in your shoes before, but my boss did not cuss.  my suggestion for you is to beat your boss to the chase.  before he calls you into his office, you need to show integrity by owning up to your mistake.  apologize to him.  furrow your brows a little bit.  it shows seriousness and sincerity.  tell him you're very sorry for the mistake which in turn made him look bad.  tell him you will double- and triple-check you work the next time.  ask him if you could buddy-up with another co-worker to establish some kind of "sanity check" system.  sometimes staring at numbers the whole day can be very tiring, especially towards the end of the day.  having someone else to do a quick sanity check should be good enough without being inefficient.

don't feel too bad.  your boss really should have eyed your work.  the buck stops with your boss.  if your boss used your work without checking your work, i think it's just as bad as making that very error you made.

good luck tomorrow.