Who's the Boss?
Posted by TestOut Staff on
Today, Oct. 16, National Boss's Day in the United States. Please note that it is not National Bosses's (or Bosses') Day, which would imply a general celebration of all bosses everywhere. Rather, National Boss's Day would seem to imply the recognition and commendation of a particular, singular capital-B Boss. So perhaps if you're either from New Jersey or live there, then you celebrate Bruce Springsteen. For everyone else, um, maybe God?
See the problem here?
On the other hand, U.S. greeting card manufacturer Hallmark refers to Oct. 16 on its website as National Boss Day. You could read that, again, as referring to a singular, specific Boss. The more common interpretation, however, would likely be that National Boss Day is referring to the workplace hierarchical position of "boss," and therefore to all individuals who occupy such a position. Just to further muddle the issue, of course, one of Hallmark's signature greeting cards for National Boss Day wishes the recipient a "Happy Boss's Day."
You know what might have cleared all of this up for everyone everywhere? Just don't mess with an apostrophe at all — messing with apostrophes is the root cause of many an English language grammatical snafu — and call it National Bosses Day. If only someone could have gotten to Patricia Bays Haroski, who established the historical date for an observance of something connected to bosses (or to a specific boss) by registering a new holiday with the United States Chamber of Commerce in 1958. Time machine, anyone?
Here at TestOut Continuing Education, we work for one of the best bosses you'll find anywhere, TestOut founder and CEO Noel Vallejo. If you haven't ever met Noel personally, then you can click here to find out a little bit more about his vision for TestOut, or click here to learn about some of the business philosophies he has followed to drive the success and longevity (25 years!) of TestOut. Noel values people, and TestOut employees work hard to excel at their jobs for him.
A good boss can make a big difference for a lot of people. Take a moment today to recognize the leaders in your organization who are looking out for the well-being and career advancement of you and your coworkers.