How To Get The Best From The Worst Boss.

By A. Abeku Haywood-Dadzie

When all is said and done, the fastest way to move up is to “manage up”

What comes to your mind when you think about your boss? Which of these statements best describes your boss? A straight-talking, foul-mouthed, shrewd operator who constantly drains you of your self-worth; a micromanaging, foolishly stubborn, and pompous skinflint who constantly expresses contempt and disgust for your incompetence and ineptitude; a cruel, cold, and loud-mouthed know-it-all who is used to getting what he or she wants and is clinical in putting others down; or power-tripping indidvidual with an infriorty complex, These are the descriptions of bosses in the movie Horrible Bosses.

You are not alone if any of the above statements apply to your boss, and you despise him or her to the extent that you love Fridays and hate Mondays. For Nick, Kurt, and Dalein in the movie "Horrible Bosses," "the only thing that would make the daily grind more tolerable would be to grind their intolerable bosses into dust."

Timothy Russell identified seven traditional styles of bosses in any company in his article "The seven types of workplace conduct"; what I call the seven types of bosses are commanders, drifters, attackers, pleasers, performers, avoiders, and analytical. Russell identified one of these bosses as the attacker boss, a fascinating and intriguing personality.

According to Tim Russell, attacker bosses have the following characteristics: they are always furious and hostile, cynical and grumpy, and they are frequently the most depressing and most demoralising influence in the workplace. They are highly critical of others in public, using demeaning and condescending tones, with biting sarcasm. The attacker boss?attack on others is personal in nature, tantamount to verbal abuse. It's not just that they view themselves as superior to others, continually expressing contempt and disgust for the incompetence and inadequacy of their fellow workers. Attackers make you vulnerable by pushing you to the point that you lose your composure and self-esteem.

The question is, how do you manage bosses who exhibit traits like this? Bosses who take credit for your work, never provide positive feedback, cave immediately under pressure, and fail to support you in accomplishing your task.How do you manage the very person you are expected to take directions from and who never recognises your excellent performance?

To reaffirm what I said earlier, you are not alone. According to Amy Rees Anderson's article "How A Bad Boss Can Make You Sick," a startling 75% of employees believe their boss is the most difficult and stressful aspect of their job. She went on to say that, according to a recent study conducted by Keas.com, 77 percent of employees had experienced medical symptoms of stress as a result of poor supervisors. According to the study, employees who have a strained relationship with their superiors are 30% more likely to develop coronary heart disease. Not only that, but three out of every four employees say their boss is the worst and most stressful element of their job, with 65 percent saying they would quit if they could.

The irony of this subject matter is that most firms spend billions on training to establish, maintain, and improve their managers' human management competencies. Regardless, the problem will be for these managers to apply what they've learned in these training sessions on the job. There is frequently a disconnect between theory and practise. This void, on the other hand, can only be filled by the innate motivations and characteristics of the particular manager. That is, an individual's capacity to determine the path on which he or she wishes to go in life and to go in that direction with consistency and clarity.

The other side of the coin is that while some organisations spend billions on training their managers, others spend next to nothing on training their managers. This means that even decent people who lack the necessary human management expertise might be lousy bosses because they simply don't know what to do when they are continuously placed in difficult situations for which they are unprepared.

As a result, subordinates must learn to efficiently manage their bosses, or "manage up," which is defined as "doing anything you can to make your boss's job easier by essentially managing your manager." Learning to manage your boss efficiently can improve your relationship with your boss, make your job easier, help you be more productive, and many more benefits that are dependent on the relationship.

September Issue (2009), Swimming With Sharks (1994), Glengarry Glenn Ross (1992), The Proposal (2009), and The Departed (2009) are just a few of the movies that come in handy as a trainer while teaching about "managing up" (2006). My favourites, though, are The Devil Wears Prada (2006) and Horrible Bosses (2011); the only difficulty with Horrible Bosses is that it contains more explicit scenes and language, making training a bit more difficult.

The?story?of?"a?boss?from?Hell"?is?told?in?"The?Devil?Wears?Prada." Andrea Sachs is a recent college graduate who has been employed as an assistant to Miranda Priestly, a high profile, wildly successful editor of "Runway Magazine" who has the uncanny ability to turn every member of her staff into a terrified, whimpering child. Andrea is put to the test every day as the assistant to the most feared, despised, and impossible boss in the history of impossible bosses. She puts up with it all by keeping her eyes on the prize. As things escalate from the merely unacceptable to the downright outrageous, Andrea begins to realise that the job a million girls would die for may just kill her. And even if she survives, she has to decide whether or not the job is worth the price of her soul. She resigned at long last.

According to "Business Dictionary.com", a job description is a broad, general, and written statement about a specific job that includes but is not limited to duties, purpose, responsibilities, scope, and working conditions of a job, along with the job's title, and the name or designation of the person to whom you have to report to. A job description usually forms the basis of the job specification. It gives all the details, which might be good for both the company and the applicant so that both parties are on the same page regarding the job posting.However, there is always one crucial item that is notably absent from this vital document: the employee's responsibility to manage the manager. or they say, "manage up." This unwritten job description is the bedrock of a successful relationship between the two parties, which in turn translates to the success of the organisation.

It's important to note that many managers may engage in behaviours that frustrate their subordinates from time to time or do things that may really annoy them. It's always imperative on the part of the subordinate to exhibit candour as well as make their boss look good. Again, it must be the priority of the subordinate to help the manager shine and become the team's brand ambassador. This is a balancing act.

How do you do this? Be a problem solver, not a problem creator; stay calm even when everything around you is in a state of chaos; avoid the blame game by always holding yourself accountable; always set up healthy boundaries by separating your personal life from your professional life; do not make excuses; and be consistently positive in the face of challenges.The prescription here is not to accept or tolerate the intolerable behaviours of bosses, but rather for employees to exhibit candour without being arrogant.?

Did you know this? According to a Gallup study, around 50% of employees leave their company to get away from their bosses. It's, therefore, safe to say that most people leave their bosses, not companies. Nevertheless, because the vast majority of bosses don't have any special abilities or training, we're likely to end up replacing one bad boss with another,

Another prescription when it comes to managing your manager is to learn his or her likes and dislikes and make excuses for his or her shortcomings daily if that will help.?

Finally, everything ended tragically in "The Devil Wears Prada." Andrea was out of work less than a year after starting at Runway Magazine when she walked out on the job. Although her potential new employer had concerns about her brief time at the magazine, he couldn't deny Miranda's recommendation.?"I got a fax from Miranda Priestly herself, saying that of all the assistants she'd ever had you're by far her biggest disappointment… and if I don't hire you I'm an idiot"