Does your superior suck? Ellie McDonald narrows in on what to do when your manager is being a major pain in the proverbial.
Does your superior suck? Ellie McDonald narrows in on what to do when your manager is being a major pain in the proverbial.You’re singled out in front of all your coworkers
You nailed the job interview, got the job, and you’re now six months into a new nineto-six life. But despite taking home the trophy of this epic work win, you’re finding that your career glory is tarnishing more and more with each soul-sapping day that goes by – and it’s all down to bad-boss behaviour. This is exactly what happened to Linda*, 26, when she landed her dream job in the finance industry. It wasn’t long after she first started that she realised the office politics, driven by someone above her, made for a ridiculously toxic environment. “When someone goes out of their way to deliberately undermine people, you lose confidence,” she explains. “You are always completely on edge.” So much so it has caused Linda to question whether she should stay at this job or leave.
If you can’t deal with your tyrannical supervisor or mean manager, don’t e-mail them in a resignation rage yet. We look at the ways your boss grinds your gears and show you exactly how to deal.
You feel like your boss gives you too much work
Swimming in work is an understatement; you find yourself wading through stacks of A4 paper just to get to your keyboard. Everyone else seems to be able to leave on time, but your workload holds you back from making plans with your pals during the week. With how much work you have to get through, you never finish on time. Plus, you’re so exhausted after work each night, you can barely drag yourself out of the office to go home.
WHAT TO DO: Look at the bright side here; those who perform well tend to be given more to do. While this may be true, career consultant Jane Lowder points out that it’s important to have a balance. “Document your workflow and demonstrate that despite your consistently high level of achievement, the excessive workload is impairing your ability to do your job as well as you’d like,” she says. “Often, your boss hasn’t paid attention to who is doing what, and your actions may trigger a fairer redistribution of work or a closer scrutiny of its allocation.”
Look at the bright side here; those who perform well tend to be given more to do.
You’re singled out in front of all your coworkers
You’ve spent the last two weeks polishing off a report to perfection. You hand it in to your manager, ahead of time, and she appears to be quite impressed. That’s until she tells you you’re stupid for not looking at another case study on top of the three that you already included. To make things even worse, she calls you up on this in the office kitchen right in front of four of your other colleagues. Ouch.
WHAT TO DO: Whether you’re burning from embarrassment following this awkward encounter or totally seething with anger, there’s a good chance your boss doesn’t realise she may have come across as very brash and abrasive, or how her behaviour has affected you. “The best strategy you can use is to calmly and professionally present your interpretation of the situation and offer your boss a chance to explain him or herself,” says Jane. “Assertiveness and open communication is key. Suffering in silence is the worst option, as the angst will only compound over time.”
Every organisation should have a policy document on this that clearly outlines bullying definitions and recommended action.
Your manager has a serious case of double standards
There’s a growing stay-back-late culture that is driving the business you work for. And this is something you consistently adhere to, clocking up countless late nights and missing out hanging with your friends, just like most other people in the office do. And by most people, that’s pretty much everyone but the boss. Fair? Well, you definitely don’t think so.
WHAT TO DO: If you feel you’re working outside of what your job description entails, bring this up with your boss, stat. “Unfortunately, not all managers are very fair,” says career consultant Katie Roberts. “If their expectations of you really go well beyond what your job is or what the terms of your employment are, there is a reason to raise that.”
Your team leader bullies you and says inappropriate things
It’s casual Friday and you wear your favourite jeans to work. But when you go to fill the printer, your team leader tells you that you dress promiscuously as she walks past, scoffing. You can still hear her laugh about it in the distance. The thing is, though, you don’t find this funny at all; you find it to be an inappropriate comment to be dealt with in the workplace, particularly by your boss. It feels wrong.
WHAT TO DO: No one deserves to feel intimidated at work. However, there is a professional way to handle this situation. “Every organisation should have a policy document on this that clearly outlines bullying definitions and recommended action,” says Jane. The first step is to document everything. “Keep written records of all bullying behaviour,” adds Katie. “This includes dates, what was said, and if anyone witnessed it. Then share your concerns with your HR manager or boss and get advice on what to do from there.”
Your supervisor won’t help you advance in your career
During a performance review, your boss explained she’d give you the training you need to score your next big promotion. And… that was eight months ago. You work really hard and put in extra effort wherever you can, but you can’t climb the career ladder without the mentoring your manager promised you.
WHAT TO DO: Bosses are generally pretty busy and can get swept up in their own work without thinking about yours. That said, Katie believes this is the time to be proactive and speak to your boss about your concerns. “The best thing to do is ask if you can schedule a regular meeting with them, like once a month,” she says. “Use that time to discuss your work and how you can grow and develop within that role.”
Can’t take it anymore!
Feel like you’re the only one suffering under your boss? These people we polled share your woes.
My boss likes to volunteer to take on new projects and initiatives but all the work always ends up being done by me and my colleagues.” Sam*, 26
It’s difficult to work with my boss, because she doesn’t give clear instructions and I get confused by what she wants. She’s constantly pushing work to me but I see her walking around the office all the time, with nothing to do. It’s really annoying.” Kimberly*, 23.
My previous manager could be overly demanding with her requests at times. One time, she made the entire team under her work overtime for absolutely no reason. It was as if we were working around her mood swings more than with her as a manager.” Kaylyn*, 24
My boss micromanages and always limits my new ideas so she can feel like she’s in charge.” Michelle*, 24
My boss is a passiveaggressive prick, and I never really know when her mood swings would storm over me. One minute, she’d be all happy and gush over how much she loves my work and the next, she would be giving me the silent treatment just because of a typo in my work.” Nic*, 24
