I can’t imagine that you’re horrid to work for, but I don’t work for you. You don’t work for you either. So how do you know? Are you sure?
If you want to be a boss of choice, at the very least you want to know if you’re unwittingly rubbing people up the wrong way.
In a recent article, journalist Minda Zetlin interviewed Dr Laura Crawshaw for Inc. Laura founded the Boss Whispering Institute (I’m a member). Laura came up with nine questions to ask yourself. They’re a great place to start so I’m sharing them with you here:
“1. How long do your employees stay with you?”
If it’s less than average, then it’s time to start asking yourself why that might be.
“2. What’s your relationship afterward?”
If you’ve had a good working relationship, then you are likely to stay in touch. It’s a bad sign if you never hear from any of your ex employees again.
“3. Do you help employees develop?”
The best bosses want their employees to be successful. Do you do what you can to help them grow and develop?
“4. Do you feel like you’re the smartest person in the office and no one else has any idea how to do their job?”
Sorry, that’s another bad sign. Sure employees can do stupid things, we all can. But there’s also a good chance your management style could improve here.
“5. Do you frequently get into intense confrontations with employees or others at the office?”
It’s another clue something’s wrong with your approach.
“6. Do you spend most of your time feeling frustrated with your employees or co-workers?”
Some frustration is normal. But most of the time? You’re the common denominator, so the inconvenient truth is that it’s something about you.
“7. Do you have a scary nickname in your workplace?”
If you’re lucky enough to find out, you might be tempted to laugh it off. Take it to heart. This kind of feedback is gold.
“8. Do people phrase things carefully around you?”
If you sense that people are scared of you, reluctant to tell you things – especially bad news, or try to keep out of your way… chances are you’re an abrasive boss.
“9. How did people communicate in your family when you were growing up?”
That pesky family of origin again! If you grew up in a more aggressive family, armed with some self-awareness and some coaching or training, then there is no reason that this has to continue. Now I’m not saying it’s easy, but ‘where there’s a will’, as they say, ‘there’s a way’.
If you suspect your management style could do with some tweaking, then I suggest you make the brave move to do something about it. It might be challenging to confront but the results are worth it.
Help, there’s an abrasive boss at my workplace!
Ok, so this isn’t you but it’s all too familiar… it’s your own boss or a co-worker. If you’d like to talk it through – either to get some help with your own or someone else’s management style, I can help.
Sometimes a tweak is all someone needs to become a boss of choice!
P.S. If you are getting complaints about someone’s management style, don’t ignore them. Click >>here<< to learn about what you can do to overcome negative perceptions in the workplace.
Photo by Anna Shvets from Pexels
