Just Say No! to Horrible Bosses

Now you probably don’t have a boss as bad as those in the movie, “Horrible Bosses”.  But what can you do?

First lets learn more about what a good boss, a successful manager, looks like.  Hopefully you can be a boss who demonstrates a better way to manage that empowers your employees to achieve more, work harder for your company goals, and enjoy themselves so that they refer more like-minded people to constantly improve the team and the results.

Who wouldn’t want that?  So read on…

We’ve all had good managers and bad managers and those in between.

Good management, like good business, is built on trust.  When trust is there, more work gets done, done right, on time, the first time.

Old school yelling and kicking desks is out.  Team feedback and involvement is in.

Looking over the infographic it is amazing that 71% of employees aren’t  fully engaged.  And 60% would work harder if their relationship with their boss improved.

Think about that.

Imagine how much more your group or company could accomplish if the engagement was increased another 10-20%.  Do you have bosses who are supporting their team’s efforts to drive to greater success?  Or do you have bosses who are tearing apart their teams or ruling with an iron fist?  Looks what you’re leaving on the table.

The other interesting fact was that a third of the employees would prefer a better boss over a raise and a third make them feel underappreciated and unmotivated.

Wow!  So which third are those people in your company?  What could you do to improve their engagement?

• Replace a bad boss (I don’t recommend murdering them as the movie suggested)? Usually this is the best approach because typically bad bosses are not coachable (because their world view doesn’t typically open them up for coaching – those that are coachable often are already good bosses and may just need fine tuning).
• Leave the bad boss.  If you have a bad boss who isn’t retiring soon or likely to be fired soon, you may be better off finding a new job that gets you out from under their tyrannical rule.  Why suffer if management won’t resolve the issue.
• Take it to HR.  Sometimes this works but is definitely a potential political risk that could doom your career within a company (even if they all know the person is a horrible boss who may be breaking all kinds of harassment and hostile workplace laws).  People are strange that way and they often don’t want to be confronted with a situation that requires a solution that they aren’t prepared to pull the trigger on (like having to find a new boss when the boss’s boss hasn’t been engaged and doesn’t know how do do what the boss is responsible for).

So as we’re nearing the new year, are you in the 2/3 or 1/3 group?

If you’re in the 2/3, who has a good boss, congratulations!  Know that you have a great opportunity to show your stuff, increase your skills and knowledge, and contribute to a great team.  Recognize that and make the most of your time there.

If you’re in the 1/3, who are struggling under a bad boss, what options do you have?

Well a lot of that depends on you, your skillset, the options within your company and industry.  It also depends on where you are in your career and your connections.

But if you’re not happy and not learning in the environment you are in, and if you have a bad boss that is driving that unhappiness, you can either suck it up (hoping that the end is near) or you can look for other opportunities elsewhere.

Often what holds us there, like an abusive relationship, is fear of what is out there, and a certain comfort knowing the bad you’re dealing with and knowing how to react.  Those two things often hold people back from pursuing something more fulfilling.

But recognize that life is short.  Too short to suffer for very long under a bad boss or in a bad work environment.

So what are things looking like for you heading into 2016?

Maybe now is the time to re-evaluate.  As the holidays and time off work approaches, how might you figure out your priorities and goals for next year.

How did your goals progress this year? Did you achieve most of them?  Or did you get distracted from them or just plain forgot them this year?

When you were successful in achieving your goals, did someone hold you accountable?

Well 2016 is not the time to suffer with a bad boss, or suffer through another year of underachieving.  You’re better than that.

Want to achieve more?

Join me for a beta test of a new goal attainment and accountability program I’m testing out.  I’m kicking this off on January 1st so join now.  I’m also limiting this beta test to 20 people.  If that is you, let me know now before I close it down.

Here’s to a successful 2016!  And an end to horrible bosses everywhere.