Lissa Appiah | Career Strategist
My team member showed up 10 minutes late to a meeting she requested… and didn’t say a word. No “sorry.” No “thanks for your patience.” Just silence...then slides. Everyone else had been waiting, including senior leaders. One messaged me privately: “Aren’t they going to say something?” After the meeting, I checked in. Was everything okay? She said yes and that she was following advice she’d read online: “Don’t say sorry at work. Be assertive.” Here’s the thing, assertiveness is important. But so is self-awareness. If your actions impact others, acknowledging it isn’t weakness. It’s respect. You don’t need to over-apologize for every little thing at work. But context matters. Discernment > blanket advice. Are there situation where it's okay to say sorry at work?
3 days ago | [YT] | 4
Lissa Appiah | Career Strategist
My team member showed up 10 minutes late to a meeting she requested… and didn’t say a word.
No “sorry.”
No “thanks for your patience.”
Just silence...then slides.
Everyone else had been waiting, including senior leaders.
One messaged me privately: “Aren’t they going to say something?”
After the meeting, I checked in. Was everything okay?
She said yes and that she was following advice she’d read online:
“Don’t say sorry at work. Be assertive.”
Here’s the thing, assertiveness is important. But so is self-awareness.
If your actions impact others, acknowledging it isn’t weakness.
It’s respect.
You don’t need to over-apologize for every little thing at work.
But context matters.
Discernment > blanket advice.
Are there situation where it's okay to say sorry at work?
3 days ago | [YT] | 4