Sort of inspired by the first name/last name thread, but mostly something I’ve noticed on TV. My wife watches several of the dramas on CBS, and it seems like on every show she watches, characters always call their boss “Boss”. I think I first noticed this on “The Mentalist” several years ago, and I found it jarring because I don’t know anyone who does this in real life. But then it turned into one of those things that, once you notice it, you notice it a lot.
So, anybody here call their boss “Boss”? What about higher-ups, do you address them by name or by their title?
As for the OP, no. I’ve only worked in “Corporate America” for my career where, since the early 90s, we only call our “boss” by his or her first name. I mean, assuming I can even identify who my actual “boss” is.
Yeah, I’ve had bosses who would occasionally get addressed as “fearless leader”. For example “oh Fearless Leader, thou who fightest the pile of paperwork… get a move on or we’re going to miss the plane and remember, it’s your company paying for the hotels and tickets.”
Yeah, maybe in some fringe case, like Nava’s example. But since my first corporate job I have always addressed my boss, and most everyone else I work with, by their first name.
To answer the OP, I haven’t really had that many “bosses,” really, but, no I never called any of them, boss. I do sometimes use the word “boss” in a friendly manner and hear it used in a friendly manner with me, even from strangers (exclusively by men). Like, I may go to get my oil changed, and the guy might say something like “whatcha need today, boss?”
One of my first jobs was as a door-to-door salesman. We were under orders to get the [del]sucker’s[/del] customer’s first name, and work it into the conversation as often as possible. If they think you are their friend, you can screw them out of more money. That job left me with a knee-jerk suspicion of people who insist on first names.
I don’t like using my boss’ first name, and I don’t really care if he prefers it. I use “Boss” as often as I can get away with it.
I, too, am suspicious of salespeople who use my first name. I find it a little invasive. But I expect people who actually know me, that I see every day, to use my first name if they name me at all.