Change You to Change Your Boss
There are many different kinds of bosses out there, and you may disagree with your bosses approach, but are your boss’s methods merely a reflection of how you are generally perceived in your work environment? HRdownloads examines the challenging issue of dealing with your boss by dealing with yourself first.
Not getting along with your boss will make work life difficult, but how have you contributed to the problem? The following are common traits that can be applied to most of us at one time or another.
Are you:
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a constant complainer: do you tend to focus on the negative rather than choosing to be a positive influence in your work environment. Co-workers will typically shy away from people who are not positive in their general outlook on life and/or business issues
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an objector: a person who always responds as to why something won’t work rather than focusing your skills, energy and knowledge to help create solutions to make something work.
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a procrastinator: does your boss constantly have to remind you with respect to achieving objectives or time lines associated with your duties or special projects
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a spectator: someone who naturally waits for someone else to take the initiative to address an issue or challenge
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defensive: rather than really listening to advice or constructive criticism do you find yourself reacting quickly to defend your actions or behaviour before you try to understand the speaker’s perspective, potentially missing a learning or personal growth opportunity
Yes, we all know the boss is someone who has been assigned the role of guiding, challenging, directing, disciplining, coaching, motivating and, depending on the focus of the organization, perhaps controlling others. Your boss was selected for their position likely without your input based on someone else’s criteria you may or may not support.
Many people will claim someone made them react or feel in a particular manner, this will only occur IF you allow this to happen. The boss typically has the greatest influence on their subordinate’s work environment. The extent to which this applies to an individual will depend on whether the person is proactive or reactive in the process of taking responsibility for managing themselves.
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Action Plan: There are proactive measures that can be initiated to positively impact a relationship with the boss. 1. Objectivity-Look objectively at your behavioural profile. If you catch yourself always complaining about your boss, aspects of your job or the general work environment, stop and decide if you want to continue to be part of the “poor morale” problem or work toward being part of the solution. If all else fails read HRdownloads' Conflict Resolution Best Practice Guide 2. Get Answers-Choose to invest your energy in searching for answers; ask for the input of others to address problems or issues. If you provide a positive atmosphere for discussion and lead by example, others will follow and be more supportive of your role in the organization. 3. Organize-Organize your work day, prioritize your tasks and special projects and make sure your priorities are aligned with the issues and concerns most important to your boss. If he/she is a details person, spend the extra time to make sure your work is accurate. If time lines and deadlines are critical to your boss and your organization ensure you meet or exceed the stated targets. 4. Participate- Take a risk and offer to join a committee or work project team. You may not be giving yourself enough credit for your “resident expertise”, prior work experience and/or education. If you want to hit a home run once in a while you have to come off the bench. A recent survey of older people indicated they didn’t have regrets for what they had experienced in their lives but expressed regret for what they had not tried to do. 5. Think before you respond-Take a deep breath before you respond to a question or try to provide a solution to a complex situation. You do not always have to come up with an immediate solution. Advise your boss you will consider the issue at hand and report back to him/her by a certain date. Remember to verify the timeline you provide is appropriate from your boss’s perspective. 6. Review-If you do not receive sufficient feedback from your boss, take change and manage this aspect of your career. Work with your boss to schedule a brief meeting (perhaps weekly or bi-weekly) to review your assignments, projects and responsibilities. Make sure your boss knows what you are accomplishing and where you require assistance or guidance to achieve your targets. Asking for input both recognizes the person has value to your role and helps develop a team approach in the work environment. 7. Be Humble- Constructive criticism is difficult for most people to consider and perhaps even more difficult to act on. Even if your boss’s approach does not match your expectations of leadership, take the time to review the intention of the feedback. In many cases the boss is providing direction that others around you wish they could give you but they don’t want to risk hurting your feelings. 8. Focus- Business focused at work; try to minimize your personal life issues and challenges while at work as they can be a major distraction that ultimately negatively affects your ability to perform. |
Final Thought
The bottom line is, for the boss-subordinate relationship to achieve its potential for success it must be a two way street. A subordinate may have to think and act creatively to provide subtle guidance to his/her boss to enhance the working relationship. Whether your boss has a personality you appreciate or not, if you exhibit respect for his/her position and contribution it can be infectious and often will result in greater respect of you in your role.
If you are in a supervisory role, please remember many employees quit their boss NOT their job. If you ask your subordinates how you could be more effective in your role to assist them in their position, it may open the channel of communication resulting in enhanced productivity for both of you.