A person founding “the movement to end workplace bullying abuse” has shared a lesson on how to “turn the tables on bully bosses.”
TikTok account @bossupcultureorg, run by Christin Peeples, the founder of Boss Up Culture Org, posted a video titled, “Oh, How I Turned The Tables On My Bully Bosses & Loved Every Second.” In it, Peeples offers examples of times she has “turned the tables” on management.
“Wanna know how you can run circles around managers who wanna pull you into the conference room?” Peeples declared. “Well, listen up.”
In one instance, Peeples says a former boss called her and her senior manager into a conference room. He characterized him as “totally disrespectful.”
“In my mind, I’m like, ‘Chris, he’s playing checkers, you play chess. Piss him off.’ This is the conversation I’m having in my mind. ‘Be professional, but play the game.'”
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Peeples says she let her “bully” boss have the floor as requested.
“So as he was telling me, ‘This is my meeting. I speak. I tell you when you can speak.’ They want you to say, ‘Don’t talk to me that way.'”
In Peeples’ experience, that approach can lead to a conflict that the employer can use as an opportunity to fire the employee.
“I was like, you know you’re right. This is your meeting. Go ahead and speak. You were saying?” At this point in the video, Peeples employs a cricket sound effect. “He didn’t have nothing to say. I left it up to my senior manager to say, ‘Please don’t talk to her that way.’”
At that point in the meeting, Peeples recalls, she remained calm while her boss threw “jabs” her way.
“They want a reaction out of you. But instead I flipped the script on him and I was getting all kinds of reactions out of him. He said, ‘She’s carefully crafting her words.’ You guys, I was loving every second.”
Peeples coaches her followers to choose the same tactic. “Next time you get pulled into a conference room, don’t give them what they’re looking for,” she advises. “They want a reaction out of you, but no. Get a reaction out of them. And I’m telling you, love every second of it.”
The video has received more than 300,000 views and 780 comments since it was posted June 20. Many commenters could relate to the experience and appreciated the advice.
“Never engage with the enemy until it’s your time/opportunity to strike,” wrote user Mama Taun. “Art of War.”
“This happened to me,” wrote commenter clairestuddard393. “I stayed completely silent while the manager acted a fool. At the end he said ‘I don’t like your arrogance.’”
“At what age did you gather this wisdom, because I’m always targeted,” wrote another user. “Something about our spirit disturbs their demons.”
Peeples responded: “After I got tired of being sick and tired. LOL! And you are so right… They can’t stand the light.”
“The power of silence is out of this world,” wrote user conqreetfitness. “I utilize this in my personal life as well.”
The Daily Dot reached out to the creator via Instagram DM for comment.