Monday August 25, 2014
by JOANNE NAYAGAM
“Choose a job you love, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life,” goes the popular adage by Confucius.
Unfortunately, for those of us who have spent time on the rungs of the career ladder, such words of wisdom may seem overly optimistic.
After all, in the modern workplace, an important factor in the job satisfaction equation is the type of supervisor we are assigned to work with.
According to the 2013 Kelly Global Workforce Index, 67 percent of the 5,147 Malaysian who took the survey reported that their supervisor or manager contributes a key factor to their job satisfaction.
Hence, unless you are your own boss, you will undoubtedly have to deal with a variety of direct managers and supervisors with different personalities.
To help you on your path to success in the workplace, here is a breakdown of three types of difficult bosses and how to not only survive working under their supervision, but excel and shine like the star employee you know you are.
The workaholic
You know the type.
He or she is always first in the office and out the last, diligently contributing to the company’s vision and goals, without a murmur of complaint ever leaving their lips.
While it might be great that you have a boss who is so committed to rolling out top-notch work, the problem often starts when their expectations of you are to behave the same way.
Family dinner? You’d better call your Ma. Vacation? In your dreams.
Managing your boss: When it comes to The Workaholic boss, one of the best ways to start is to ensure that you are both on the same page as to expectations of you, as well as deadlines and short-term and long-term work goals.
This will help you to identify what needs to be completed urgently and ensure your hours at work are effectively spent so you can head on to that dinner with the family.
Another suggestion is to maintain an open-relationship with your boss, so that they know how important having time outside of work is to you.
This also sheds light on any personal or family issues that you need to leave work on time to deal with, which will also motivate them delegate work to you in a more time-appropriate manner.
The pushover
You love your boss and couldn’t imagine having anyone nicer. It seems that you mighthave just hit the boss jackpot.
Unfortunately, when it comes to around to bonus time, your team isn’t celebrating quite as happily as the rest of the company. You have a strange feeling that it is perhaps because your manager didn’t stand ground at his/her meeting with management.
Managing your boss: In this case, always maintain a level of respect with your boss, acknowledging them for the leader that they are meant to be even if they act in a very cordial manner.
This helps to establish boundaries and enforces that at the end of the day, as far as the organisational chart goes, you are the subordinate.
Also, always try to give him/her 100 percent of your support. The encouragement and the team’s continuous support will give them that added confidence to know they are on the right track.
The hot head
While everybody else is having a manic Monday, you’re having a manic everyday thanks to your boss who seems to be frequently annoyed.
To make matters worse, he/she is not afraid to verbally (and often loudly) make their feelings known.
You are generally intimidated by this boss and as a result, are never quite at ease in their presence.
Managing your boss: The first thing you can do in this scenario is pay attention to his/her pattern of behaviour, looking out for signs of things which specifically initiate a bout of scolding.
Does he/she like taking their time when they first get to work? Are there specific objectives that they would like you to accomplish with regards to your work?
Taking note of these little things will help you to understand your boss’ personality and how to deal with them.
Of course, if your boss’ behaviour teethers on bullying, then it is best advised for you to seek out help from your human resources department. While your boss is meant to guide you towards producing work that is beneficial to the company, it in no way gives them the authority to bully.
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Based in the United States, freelance writer Joanne Nayagam is embarking on a journey of proportions with pen and paper in hand and ideas to boot. To get in touch with her, drop an email to editor@mystarjob.com.