What Am I Supposed To Do? She replies in SECONDS!!!

A fellow manager, Margaret, runs a department that works closely with mine. As a result, we work together on many projects. We work together so closely, in fact, that when others have a question that pertains to one of our departments, they usually include both of us on the email.

Margaret is very outspoken, a classic extrovert. She thinks quickly, has strong opinions, and is consistently among the first to speak up on issues in meetings. She is also very on top of her email. In our office, when one receives an incoming email, a bubble pops up to alert you. Clicking on this bubble will take you directly to the new message in your inbox. Ignoring it will cause it to fade away within a second or two. Personally, I prefer to ignore it and glance through my email every 10-15 minutes. I've sat with Margaret at her desk when working on projects; she always clicks the bubble.

Over the months, Margaret has developed a routine. When an email is sent to both of us and the question at hand is something I should address, she will forward it my way with a message like "this one's yours" or "it's all you!" She literally sends it my way within a minute of us receiving the original message...before I've even had a chance to read it myself.

I've never asked her not to do this...mainly because I never really thought it was a big deal. Until today anyway, when she approached me.

Margaret told me, in a very serious tone, that she feels I need to step up more. She said that there is no need for me to hesitate in responding to these emails to see what she'll say...she wants me to be comfortable responding without being prompted.

WTF?!?!? In my mind, I'm thinking, "Are you kidding me?!!! How can I reply with an intelligent response before you forward it to me with your three-word message!?!"

Instead, I went with the mature response. "I think that most of the time, it's just a matter of you seeing the email before I do. I'm certainly more than willing to field questions related my area. Going forward, when an email comes through that pertains to me, don't worry about forwarding it my way as well. I'll just plan on responding to it."

Ugh!