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TIPS FOR WORKING WITH A DIFFICULT BOSS By Amit Puri
Having a supervisor that makes your work painful can be one of the worst situations to be in. Difficult bosses come in various forms and may be unappreciative, give too much work, take credit for themselves, be verbally abusive, expect you to have no life outside of work and so on. Given the amount of time we spend in the workplace and in addition with our boss, this will have a big effect on your psychological/emotional well-being.
So how do you cope with this? Each one of the situations/behaviours mentioned above could possibly be tackled differently and it is hard to present recommendations without a particular scenario in mind. Nevertheless, I can provide some general advice, which should be applicable many cases. The most important factor to bear in mind, is that you should avoid getting bogged down by the state of affairs and pondering too much about all details/drama. Keep yourself positive and focussed on solutions.
Assuming that you want to continue in the same job/firm, the first step is to see what you are able to do to make the situation better.
Take into consideration all the adjustments you possibly can make to your personal attitude, thought process and behaviour. Then try out a couple of of the changes and see which ones have the most positive influence, on you and/or your supervisor’s behaviour. Proceed doing what works and discard what doesn’t
Make sure that you are going about your job properly and performing at high levels
Keep in mind that making your supervisor look good is part of your job. If he’s happy, most often you’ll be happy also
Look for support. Other people at in your office might be going through the identical scenario, discuss with them, vent a little bit and perhaps even have a laugh about the way your supervisor behaves. It’s usually nice to know that you are not alone
If that doesn’t work, then it may be helpful to have a chat with your supervisor.
Verify with him that your performance is good and ask what could be done to improve further
Ask him what you can do to make his life better
Speak about modifications in your job profile that might assist you
If feasible, discuss changes in the way he interacts with you and how you could work better together
Don’t make it a blame game. Stay focussed on solutions
Another alternative is to speak to other people in the company (such as individuals higher up) and see what options you have. Perhaps you might move to a different division? In my experience, this approach may work in very massive firms however will be less effective in smaller organisations, for numerous reasons.
If all else fails, then contemplate leaving the firm and moving on. It’s just not worth it.
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