Overheard my boss say 'we just make it up as we go' in a meeting and nobody blinked

I was sitting in a Tuesday morning strategy meeting at our Tulsa office, taking notes like I always do. My boss, the VP of Operations, casually said to the CEO, "We just make it up as we go, that's the secret." I thought he was joking, but nobody even laughed or corrected him. Six people just nodded and moved on to the next slide about quarterly goals. That moment hit me harder than any career book or seminar I've ever sat through. Made me wonder how many other people in leadership roles are just winging it too. Has anyone else caught their higher-ups admitting they have no real plan?

2 comments

2 Comments

thompson.xena7d ago

Are you sure they weren't just making a joke?

betty_ward6d ago

Oh, I get what you're saying, @thompson.xena, but honestly, I have a hard time letting things slide like that. My neighbor once told me her cat was "just being dramatic" when it hissed at the mailman every day. Turned out the cat had a toothache and was in real pain. So now I always wonder if people are hiding something behind a joke. It's like when someone says "just kidding" but you can tell they meant it a little bit. Maybe I'm too suspicious, but I've been burned by too many "jokes" that weren't really jokes. Just my two cents.