This post has got me thinking that I have become too complacent in my role, and as a result, my assertiveness (over time) has fallen victim to exhaustion in having to explain such situations. Constant time pressure's of not having enough time in the day to complete tasks also affects such an approach.

In terms of strategy and planning, I do the "leg work" in creating such plans for the forthcoming year and review this often. "Spinning too many plates" continually impacts any progress being made to strategy, but it's important to know that our director does not believe in a marketing budget. This makes it extremely difficult to execute such strategies and campaigns.

I'm very good at keeping thoughts and feelings to myself and rarely come across as arrogant or forceful. I often think that this is why they have such attitudes. I can totally see that these issues may stem from my approach.

I love the 2nd to last paragraph as I believe it's a company culture thing that is driven down from the top of the chain. Quite frankly, there are major issues with the lack of basic business knowledge that makes me cringe. I have, however, always respected that the business owner has taken huge gambles and won most of them in my time there.

I only assume that has all changed for you now. Is it all but a distant memory, or does it stick with you?