Meetings
First 1:1 with a new manager: the exact agenda
The first meeting with a new manager sets the template for the relationship. Here's the 30-minute agenda that gets you 90 days of goodwill.
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Managing Up
1:1s, expectations, alignment, and the habits that make your manager trust you.
Managing up is not kissing up. It’s the unglamorous work of making it easy for your manager to do their job — which, if you look closely, is mostly deciding things with incomplete information. Every minute your manager doesn’t have to spend hunting for status, reconstructing context, or guessing what you meant is a minute they can spend removing a blocker for you.
The mechanics are boring and that’s the point. A running 1:1 doc. A weekly status that fits in three bullets. An agenda sent the night before. A flag raised early, in writing, when something is slipping. None of this is impressive on its own. Together they compound into the thing people actually promote for, which is reliability.
The single sentence that organizes the whole topic: no surprises. If your manager learns about your work from someone else, from a missed deadline, or from a Slack thread you forgot to loop them into, you’ve lost trust that takes months to rebuild. Tell them the bad news first, tell them early, and tell them what you’re already doing about it.
Start here
The one to read first.
All 14 posts in managing up
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How to ask for more work without sounding desperate
The exact Slack message, the timing, and how to get real scope — not the busywork your manager hands out to look responsive.
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A reader asks: is it normal to be scared of my skip-level?
Being scared of your skip-level is common and useful in small doses. Here's how to channel it — and what to do when the fear is your manager's problem, not yours.
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A reader asks: I'm told to be proactive, but get snapped at when I try
When 'be more proactive' and 'don't make me repeat myself' come from the same manager, the rule you're missing isn't effort — it's signaling.
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A reader asks: my manager gives zero feedback. How do I get some?
When your manager isn't giving you feedback, the issue is rarely that they don't have any. They don't know what to give. Three questions that unlock it.
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The meeting where someone's about to throw you under the bus
You can sometimes see it coming before it happens. Here's how to recognize the signal, what to do in the room, and the one thing never to do afterward.
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Saying no without saying 'no'
Saying no in an office isn't about courage. It's about the five or six phrases that say no while keeping the working relationship intact.
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The one sentence that ends a good 1:1
Most first-year 1:1s end with 'thanks, see you next week.' Here's the one sentence that turns a decent 1:1 into one your manager remembers — and uses on your behalf.
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A reader asks: my Big 4 engagement partner keeps moving the goalposts
When the deliverable changes three times in a week, the problem usually isn't the deliverable. Here's what's actually happening and how to get ahead of it.
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A reader asks: is there a right way to push back on a deadline?
Pushback done badly sounds like an excuse. Pushback done well sounds like a request for a tradeoff. Here's the wording most first-year employees are missing.
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Week 1 Checklist: how to look competent in your first seven days
A simple day-by-day plan for your first week: relationships, clarity, and one small win.
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Status update template: the six-line update that buys you trust
A short weekly status update you can send in Slack or email that prevents surprises and keeps you aligned.
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Manager 1:1 agenda (the one that makes you look prepared)
A weekly 1:1 structure that produces decisions, not vibes. Updates, blockers, calibration, and the discipline of recommend-don't-ask.
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The secret to good 1:1 meetings (how to make every session count)
A practical 1:1 system: agenda, scripts, and follow-ups that build trust in your first 90 days.
Related topics
This topic maps to Chapter 4 — Manager dynamics of the book. See the full chapter →