RSRobince Studio

Taking Credit for Others' Work

Rahul discovers that a teammate presented his idea to leadership as their own, and has to decide how to address it professionally.

Rahul, Teammate

Key words and phrases

claim creditto say that you are responsible for something goodHe claimed credit for an idea that wasn't his.
original ideaan idea that a person thought of first, not copiedThe proposal was based on her original idea.
acknowledge contributionto publicly recognize someone's part in a piece of workHe was upset that his contribution wasn't acknowledged.
put it in writingto record something in a document, like email, for proofHe decided to put his idea in writing before the meeting.
come acrossto give a particular impression to othersHe didn't want to come across as accusing his teammate.
give credit where it's dueto recognize the person who actually deserves praiseA good manager gives credit where it's due.
steal the spotlightto take attention or praise away from someone elseHe felt his teammate stole the spotlight in the meeting.
address it directlyto deal with an issue by speaking about it openlyHe decided to address it directly with his teammate first.
professional setbacka difficulty that harms someone's career progressLosing credit for the idea felt like a professional setback.
give benefit of the doubtto assume good intentions before judging someoneHe gave his teammate the benefit of the doubt at first.
speak upto express an opinion openly, especially about something unfairHe finally decided to speak up about the situation.
cc the teamto include the whole team as recipients on an email for visibilityShe started to cc the team on her project updates.
own the narrativeto control how a story or situation is presentedHe wanted to own the narrative before rumors spread.
misrepresentto give a false or misleading account of somethingHe felt his idea had been misrepresented as someone else's.
constructive conversationa discussion focused on resolving an issue positivelyThey had a constructive conversation about the mix-up.
team recognitionacknowledgment given collectively to a group's effortsThe manager made sure there was fair team recognition.
assume good intentto believe someone did not mean harmHe tried to assume good intent before reacting.
hold your groundto firmly maintain your position on somethingHe held his ground when explaining what he had contributed.
resolve amicablyto settle a disagreement in a friendly, peaceful wayThey were able to resolve the issue amicably.
move forwardto continue progressing after resolving an issueThey agreed to move forward and collaborate better.

Useful sentences

Dialogue

RahulHey, do you have a minute? I wanted to talk about today's presentation.

TeammateSure, what's up?

RahulThe idea you presented to leadership was actually something I shared with you last week.

TeammateOh — I didn't mean to leave that out. I should have mentioned you.

RahulI appreciate that. I just want credit given where it's due.

TeammateThat's fair. I'll clarify it with the team in the next update.

RahulThank you, I really appreciate you addressing it directly.

TeammateNo problem. Going forward, let's just be clearer about attribution.

RahulSounds good. I'll also start putting ideas in writing to avoid confusion.

TeammateGood idea. Let's move forward and keep working well together.

Common mistakes

Quick quiz

1. What does "claim credit" mean?

2. What does "give credit where it's due" mean?

3. What does "put it in writing" mean?

4. What does "give benefit of the doubt" mean?

5. What does "resolve amicably" mean?

6. Complete: "He didn't want to ___ as accusing his teammate."

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