If the mere thought of your boss’ face or voice makes you cringe under the covers Monday morning, you shouldn’t let yourself stew in workplace misery. It’s especially bad when your boss seems to dislike YOU the most. Was it something you said? Do you bear a resemblance to their ex? Sometimes if you can’t leave it at random chemistry, you over-analyze yourself and become unnecessarily critical of your work. If you can’t convince yourself there, then perhaps you’ve considered hiring an exorcist for your boss. It doesn’t have to be so mysterious though, sometimes it just takes a little more communication and a few tricks to figure out how to smooth out the situation. Try these tricks first…then crack open the yellow pages for that exorcist.
Each person is different, and so their expectations and idea
of what communication is differs as well.
Many times a rift with a boss is caused by clashing attitudes, though
granted many times people in charge are just well… mean. Don’t worry though, for every kind of boss
there is a possible communication technique that just might help.
The Tantrum-Thrower
It doesn’t seem to matter what you do or how well you do it-they
always complain and criticize it. You
often say to yourself "I am not a mind-reader!" Although many other people in
the office say you are doing a good job, the boss seems to be the only one that
doesn’t see it. While you probably ARE
doing a great job, you just aren’t doing it the way they like, and they don’t understand
how to instruct you. The most obvious
solution is to simply ask specific questions on the task, "Would you like me to…" etc. If they respond vaguely or negatively to your queries, try more roundabout
approaches. If it’s a longer project,
give updates on it via email, memos, or quick, casual chats. This will provide them with an opportunity
to see where you are going with it and make comments along the way. Plus, if they do not criticize the
progression of the project, they don’t have much ground to denounce the entire
product since they knew where it was headed.
Try not to make as many assumptions or decisions with these types of
people.
If there is a chance for you to "go ahead" with something on your own
when they are out of the office for example, try dropping them a line and
asking that key question "Would you like me to…while you are away?" Sometimes this extra question makes all the
difference, making them more at ease with their authority and your initiative.
If they still seem to criticize you without reason and throw hissy fits, don’t
fight too hard, they will only fight harder back. Your best option in this case? Consider
moving on…