A wild boss? How to tame him/ her

There are six major types of bosses:

1.   The demanding boss.
2.   The bully boss.
3.   The disorganized boss.
4.   The clueless boss.
5.   The know-it-all boss.
6.   The poor-communicator boss.

I’m sure there are others and often several of these traits can be found in your boss. A bad boss can have advantages if you use the situation as an opportunity rather than as a problem.


A demanding boss may ask for more than you can deliver, but if you use the opportunity, then you can allow your boss to be the rough surface upon which you sharpen your skills. You don’t have to like your boss. Keep in mind that it is business, not personal, and always ask yourself “how can i use this situation to my advantage?”

The thing to remember is this, no matter how bad your boss is, in the end it doesn’t matter. What matters is what you do about it. Today we will share a few tips on how to contain your boss and come out as a victor:

If you have a bad boss, please adhere to the following and if you don’t have one (either you have a good one or are unemployed) use this as a future reference.

Ø  Be organized: let your boss’s disorganization be an inspiration for you to be your most organized. This is the foundation on which to build your whole career. This will allow you to deliver on all the other steps that follow. Have a system for managing your time, tasks, and projects. The more organized you are, the more productive you will be and the faster you will reach your career goals.
Ø  Deliver results in writing: this is important for pretty much all boss types. If you’ve notified your boss in writing, particularly via email, you have an e-trail to prove you finished assigned tasks on time.
Ø  Present your daily/weekly plan to your boss in writing: this is helpful for bosses who demand more than you can physically deliver. When you plan your day and your week, send a quick listing of how you will be spending your time. Be sure to prioritize it according to what your boss thinks is most important. When your boss gives you more assignments than you can handle, you can go to your boss with your daily/weekly plan that you already sent to him/her and ask your boss which items they want you to let slide.
Ø  Make your boss look good: resist the urge for sabotage because it rarely works and often backfires in your face. When you are working to make your boss look good, even bad bosses are going to notice this. When you make your boss look good, their boss will hopefully notice. But don’t wait for your boss to give you credit. Claim the credit, toot your horn. You must speak up and let your boss, your boss’s boss, and your peers know about your accomplishments.
Ø  Don’t argue but do stand your ground: if your boss attacks you, remain calm. Do not take the bait. Control your emotions for the moment. Imagine that you have a force - field around you which cannot be penetrated by verbal attack. I know this may sound kooky, but it will help your mental strength.
Ø  Manage your boss: this is all about being proactive. Don’t wait for your boss to give you his or her expectations of you. Request a meeting to set these goals. If such meeting is continually postponed by your boss then put together your best estimate of what you think your goals should be. Put them in writing and ask for your boss to give his or her feedback.
Ø  Ask for what you want: make sure you always know where it is you want to go with your career. Don’t expect to just be “promoted” for good work. Because the question is “promoted to where?” You must know first where you want to go next. Then you must communicate this to your boss. You must do it often, kind of like your own marketing campaign with your boss as your target audience. If possible you should find a way to let your boss’s boss know too, without being seen as “going over your boss’s head.”
Ø  Unbearable situations: if you have exhausted all possible tactics and your boss is just too abusive, clueless or otherwise unacceptable and you feel it is hurting your career or slowing you down, you may want to consider moving on from this boss. How should you go about doing this? With the utmost professionalism. Never give in to the desire to tell off your boss because you have decided to leave. Your paths may cross again.

Let me tell you something, in our economy, bosses will always be very hard especially middle level managers because of the pressures of things like revenue targets. Don’t be abusive when you get tied up in a corner by your boss, I rather you stay calm and walk away.

When hunting for a different job because you want to leave, do it discreetly.

We at HCC wish you a conflict free day.