If you’ve never supervised people you may be unaware of behavior that hinders rather than helps your boss:
Point out the negatives about everything. Keep your eyes open to positive changes and comment on them when appropriate, otherwise, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all. Bosses usually do know more than their staff and their decisions aren’t always clear-cut so take the initiative and ask. Be a cheerleader not a toxic Tilly.
Ignore the chain of command. Never go over your boss’s head unless there is no alternative and you’re afraid that keeping quiet will seriously harm your career or the company’s reputation. If nothing is being done about a bullying or harassment issue, report the incidences to H.R.
Abuse your sick days. You won’t endear yourself to any boss if you are frequently calling in sick or arriving late. Missing deadlines and work days for crucial projects will seldom be tolerated or even understood. Regular misses negatively impact other team members in the department, be considerate.
Always say yes. Good bosses welcome outside input and a team effort, as you are often the ones in the trenches. Be supportive, but be willing to offer a constructive alternative if you don’t agree with something or know it won’t work as well. Learn how to say no without saying no.
Personalize everything. If you make a mistake, admit it, fix it, apologize and move on. Learn from constructive criticism then let it go. Taking a well thought out risk and failing won’t be condemned by a halfway decent boss. At the same time, never apologize for something you didn’t do. You can say to a customer, “I am sorry for your inconvenience.” But not, “I’m sorry you didn’t get the parcel.” If you weren’t the who failed to mail the parcel.
We are all cut from different cloth. Open up the lines of communication if your boss doesn’t do it with you. Ensure that your boss knows what you do for a living and ensure that you know what their daily and weekly goals and objectives are as well.
Colleen Clarke
Career Specialist and Corporate Trainer
www.colleenclarke.com
Author of Networking How to Build Relationships That Count
And How To Get a Job and Keep It
Well, I assume you belong to an old school generation. If a boss is going to be judgmental, bossy and abusive then to heck with the boss. Go find a job somewhere that the boss respect the employee. After 15 years of work I had to report to an abusive manager for 2 years. I finally gave up and found a better job. Too bad for that employer. Job is just a job. Employee can only be as loyal to work that employer is loyal to employee.
I guess I’m missing the section about how you are required to put up with a “judgmental, bossy and abusive” boss as another reader mentions in her post. All I read in this article was that both manager and employee need to have open communication and both need to be accountable to what they were hired to do.
Great article reminding us of the basics of a positive workplace environment. The topic was directed at how employees can hinder their manager, however you also addressed the fact that “good bosses welcome outside input and a team effort” and “taking a well thought out risk and failing won’t be condemned by a halfway decent boss”, thus incorporating expectations of both the employee and the manager.
I agree with Jenn’s comment. If you are a conscientious worker yet you have a manager who disrespects you, then there is no way to fix the situation, and it is a waste of your life trying to do so. Intelligent people managers know that the best way to leverage employees’ strengths is by building goodwill to begin with. “Show respect, and you’ll get respect” should be an obvious maxim. And it works both ways.