Posted on 09/01/2007 4:25:43 PM PDT by shrinkermd
So you think your boss is inept, arrogant or just plain lazy? You're not alone. A recent Gallup Poll found that a bad relationship with the boss was the No. 1 reason people gave for leaving their jobs. But if you want to keep moving up the corporate rungs, you better make nice.
Having an antagonistic relationship with your supervisor is a career killer, says Cynthia Shapiro, author of the book "Corporate Confidential." "No matter how skilled you are, if you don't have a good relationship with your boss, your job is not secure," warns Shapiro...
...So how can you overcome your natural aversion to being told what to do? The trick is to treat your boss like a client, says Shapiro. Pretend like you're in business for yourself and that your boss is your most important (and quite possibly your most difficult) client.
Ask how you can provide quality service, and what you can do to differentiate yourself from the competition. And then do it. When he says or does something that leaves you feeling disgruntled, treat him as you would any other client: respectfully. Remind yourself that your livelihood depends on pleasing your client.
(Excerpt) Read more at careerjournal.com ...
However, be prepared to drop a dime on higher level supervisors or executives at the drop of a hat ~ all federal police agencies have anonymous tipster lines of some kind.
Remember, your promotion through the lower grades in a fixed personnel complement system will frequently depend on a high degree of job churning at the upper levels.
Attend the "early retirement" parties. Have a good time.
I’ve almost always gotten along well with my bosses. It does pay off.
Sounds ridiculously simple now. But I honestly had no idea my real function was to make my immediate superior look good.
I’ve been blessed. I’ve only had one really bad boss along the way, and we hung him with his own rope years ago, LOL!
And that’s counting a 20-year military career, so that’s saying something!
The one I have now is terrific. She’s totally “hands off” and trusts me to do my job. HOWEVER, I have found that ‘The Secret to My Success’ lies in still checking in with her weekly as to what I’m up to and to reassure her that all is well. :)
Sucking up: It’s always appropriate and never uncalled for.
AS long as you gotta work for someone else.
Its tough passing this kind of advise off to your kid, but its probably the best advise a parent could offer.
As my old man used to say I would rather be a CPO than an Admiral.
Ironically, few people realize that what pleases a typical, ordinary boss is not what you might think. (And most companies would prefer that there employees not know this.)
The #1 most important thing as far as most bosses are concerned is that an employee does not make work for them. And not just physical or paperwork, either. No emotional work or even energy expended thinking about them, is what makes for the “best” employees.
Actual assigned work that is not objective, like fixing things or building things, is often an illusion. Employees are often punished by their boss for doing things they think are helpful:
1) Working efficiently and faster than other employees.
2) Performing more work than other employees.
3) Actively soliciting work and jockeying for responsibility.
4) Helping others to do their work.
While these are clearly helpful on the surface, they annoy a lot of bosses, because they force them to pay attention and expend energy.
The reason is that most bosses are like regular employees. They see work as just a way to make money, with their real life being when they are not working. Anything that adds stress or requires more of a commitment at work is not good.
An enthusiastic employee to a boss is like a hyperactive child is to a school teacher, a disruption that makes their job harder.
So as long as an employee is well kempt, polite, and out of the way enough that the boss likes to see them when they do show up, they are far more likely to be highly rated, and are seen by the boss more as a peer than a subordinate.
As a final irony, unlike the typical employees under foot, the out of sight employee is more likely to be rated on actual objective criteria, than the subjective criteria used on employees the boss has to “deal with” frequently. And this in turn leads to a higher rating.
And this is one place where unions have a purpose.... taking on inept bosses.
I object to this line. The problem isn't being told what to do. It's being told to do what is obviously wrong by someone who will throw you under the buss whether you do it or not.
My current boss is great. Unfortunately, this is not the norm.
(Highwater pants are a career killer, too)
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
This is all nice and fine if moving up the ladder is your highest priority in your career, above your integrity, sense of fairness, and just plain good sense. Helping your boss stab someone in the back, or looking the other way when he does, or allowing him/her to place there personal whims above the law or regulations, or just plain fairness, may get you the promotion someday.....living with yourself afterward is a different story. Answering to God in the end could be quite shocking.
There are very few in upper managment that I respect much because they have had to sell out what I believe to be higher values than career success. However, there are those that get to the top clean, and I have great respect for them.
Its just a career. Something to enrich your life while here on earth, but not the pie itself.
This is the best post of all so far. Sounds like you work for the government. Not only does working effeciently cause problems in all workplaces. The more you do the more you get; yet everyone takes home a paycheck on payday. I have found working for your own self-satisfaction is the best policy. Pay no attention to production around you and responsibly do your job. Challenges within your job classification are easy to find if you are looking for them. And you have to learn to eat cake!
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