My boss is going behind my back.

I couldn't be more upset. Today I found out from my friend that my boss intends to fire me... and hire one of my other friends. I'm just astonished and I can't really believe this. I had to figure out from the gossip chain that I'm about to lose my job.

I know this is a long story, but I could really use some advice.

I work as a secretary/personal assistant at a computer repair shop, mostly answering phone calls and checking in customers.

Well, my boss wasn't happy with me because I was forgetting to take inventory photos of the customers' computers. I have no excuses for that, and I know it was my fault.

But, for some reason, my boss wasn't the one to tell me he wasn't happy with my performance.

It was my coworker who awkwardly took it upon himself to mention my mistakes to me, and it was embarrassing for us both. I'm not sure if my boss put him up to it or not. I can't complain about the awkwardness. What I don't understand is why my boss couldn't confront me himself.

I've been working there for two months now. In the beginning, he used to tell me what I needed to improve on.

For some reason, he stopped doing this after the missing inventory photos were brought to my attention. After being confronted with what I did wrong, I really put myself into gear and started doing a much better job at work. I do work on extra projects if there's time.

I heard nothing but praise from him for these renewed efforts, and even now he says I'm doing a good job.

Still, he decided I wasn't worth keeping... apparently. He went down to the local bar where everyone just about knows everybody else. My friend Amy is a waitress there and she talks to my boss a lot. My boss told her that I wasn't doing a good job, and he needed to hire someone new.

But why is he lying and telling me I'm doing great, when he tells Amy he doesn't want to keep me?

Our mutual friend Beth passed all this information about the bar meeting along to me.

I know they don't want me to lose my job. Amy was supposed to go to an interview for my position, but she never showed up. If Amy becomes the new secretary, it's going to be really awkward between us, to say the least.

What's really messed up is that my boss KNOWS I'm friends with Amy. Why is he doing this? Something in the whole thing just seems spiteful.

But this boggles my mind: he actually told Amy that he likes working with me. But if he likes working with me so much, why is he going behind my back to hire someone else, my friend no less? It really hurts that he couldn't, or chose not to, confront me about what I was doing wrong. Why not let me know what I need to improve instead of axing me?

Is my boss just a huge @#$%^&*, or am I missing the picture? Is it wrong for me to be upset? Now that I wrote this all out, what he's doing seems almost spiteful to me. I know that if I get fired it's my own fault. I'm just confused.

It sounds too convoluted and second hand for me to do too much "planning" and worrying about it if I were you. When some of these things were said (could have been before you renewed your efforts?) and that they are conflicting and that your friends are personally involved, it could be partly their telling of the whatever they have heard and maybe they have some sort of thing going themselves; it is very suspicious to me that Amy was supposed to interview for your job but did not show and that Beth is telling you what Amy is being told by your boss when, if it were you or me and we were Amy, we'd just tell you ourselves?

In all my jobs I have usually had 3 months to learn a job well. It sounds like you are doing yours well now and nothing is actually happening, other than your boss saying he is pleased with your work now, since you corrected your mistake. I am very suspicious of Amy and Beth, friends or no, giving you conflicting information and stirring you up, what good could come of it? And Amy supposedly interviewing for your position? Who does that to a friend? Maybe they have a problem with you or your boss or maybe there is some truth to what they say but it is badly told or exaggerated, etc. I would not talk about work with people not there/part of it?

If they don't like your boss, maybe they are trying to get you to confront him or cause a scene, etc., cause him difficulty. I would be very suspicious of "friends" that are meddling with my work and gossiping when they are not part of the relationship with your boss and you. Maybe they just think it is "funny" and a harmless prank but look how upset, confused, anxious you are? Who does that to a friend?

If it were me, I would ask to meet with the boss; and ask if he/she had any problems with my work, request a review, and ask directly if there were plans to let you go for any reason. I would also let my boss know that I wanted to hear directly from them if there was a problem with my work.