A few weeks ago, Co-worker A told me that Co-worker B is from Costa Rica.
So last night when Co-worker B mentioned going back to El Salvador, I said, "I thought you were from Costa Rica." He looked at me with a murderous expression, walked away, and didn't speak to me for the rest of the night.
Did I commit some sort of major faux pas? And what do I say tomorrow that won't do further damage?
2007-12-13 01:33:02 · 13 answers · asked by Donna 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Etiquette
If he doesn't like that expression, then that should become his nick name. Example, " Did you hear what Coast Rica said about the boss?"
that nickname will show him that he's part of the team now.
2007-12-13 02:04:16 · answer #1 · answered by Yahoo 4 · 5⤊ 6⤋
Go to him and say: I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. Co-worker A said that you were from Costa Rica. I just assumed you were talking about visiting home because of the upcoming holidays."
He may indeed be from Costa Rica and is just visiting El Salvador-a place he has visited before, if he said he was going back.
I don't know why he got so mad. Ask him. That's the only way to find out.
2007-12-13 03:37:27 · answer #2 · answered by Highly Evolved 3 · 0⤊ 5⤋
You didn't do anything wrong. It was just a misunderstanding because you were misinformed by someone else. If you are worried that you might have offended him you could simply apologize and explain to him what happened, that you had heard someone say he's from Costa Rica and you didn't know that was not true until he said that.
2007-12-13 03:01:15 · answer #3 · answered by undir 7 · 0⤊ 5⤋
No, i dont see what you did wrong.
But I would talk to him and say " I heard that you were from Costa Rica, Im sorry that I was wrong, but I didnt know." Saying sorry shows that you do care about his feelings, but you are still telling the truth also. Dont tell him who told you about costa rica though, because that may lead into another problem.
2007-12-13 02:41:07 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 6⤋
I thought Costa Rica and El Salvador were the same place?
Seriously though, how can they blame anyone for making a common mistake like that. Ask them if they can distinguish a Korean from a Japanese or Chinese person and see what happens.
2007-12-13 01:44:38 · answer #5 · answered by ? 5 · 1⤊ 8⤋
I would just go up to him and say I am really sorry if I offended you. I hope you have fun in El Salvador. It looks like a beautiful country I researched it online. Good luck!
2007-12-13 03:29:36 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋
Yes you did offend him and you should apologize. Best way to avoid this in the future, ask the person where they are from and don't assume what your co-worker says is true, as you found out they were wrong. This isn't about political correctness it's about basic human courtesy.
Edit:
Those thumbs down show just how little people know about courtesy. Keep em comming LOL!
2007-12-13 02:17:16 · answer #7 · answered by CarynB 4 · 2⤊ 8⤋
Interesting. Just imagine how probably nothing would have happened if you had said it slightly different:
I heard you were from Costa Rica.
2007-12-13 02:11:33 · answer #8 · answered by mgerben 5 · 0⤊ 8⤋
If you had suggested that there's no difference between the two he'd be right to be offended, but it seems to me it was just an honest mistake. Maybe he was having a bad day?
2007-12-13 01:56:16 · answer #9 · answered by grt_n_pwrfl_oz 3 · 3⤊ 8⤋
Anyone can make a mistake, I'd ignore him, if he wants to be an idiot let him.
2007-12-13 02:16:22 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 7⤋