New boss who I'm desperate to impress. Been working really hard, going over and above etc, all going well until today. I wanted to do something nice for my lovely team, so I told them they could flex off early (using their own time, not work time). All targets met, no detriment to business, just trying to give a little perk to my staff. However, this is generally not allowed, so I told my team to keep it quiet. Unfortunately, someone from another team overheard, and immediately told my boss.
On being confronted, I said there must have been some crossed wires/misunderstanding. I went back to my staff, explained that I couldn't allow them to go early because I was breaking the rules. They were fine, they knew I was trying to do them a favour, they were more fed up with the person who'd run tales.
However, I'm mortified that after months of working so hard, I made this error. I'm sure my boss knew that I lied, and that it wasn't really misheard. I wish I had had the balls to be honest and admit I was breaking the rules to do something nice for my staff. It's all OK on the surface, but I'm so upset and annoyed with myself. What an idiot. Please help me feel better. Be gentle, I know this is my fault. I worry that I've permanently damaged my relationship with my boss by showing myself to be untrustworthy (which I'm normally not).ðŸ˜