How To Deal With A Pushy Boss
We’ve all been thrown under the bus; sometimes from a bad boss. There is some great advice found in this Fast Company article.
Here are their suggestions:
- Consider your actions carefully
- Stay calm and get the facts
- Document your side
- Rally and ally
- Involve HR
If you haven’t worked for a pushy boss consider yourself lucky. I’ve worked for them and was once one of those guys. It often times comes with the territory when you carry a lot of responsibility. Our desire to get things done sometimes causes us to push to get great results. If you are familiar with the DISC personality assessment, these type of people are often referred to as “High D’s.” This group has an extreme need to control, get to the point and want solutions to problems immediately. MORE
Their motto is get to the point and get outta my way! Hence, my advice is to be careful with your pushy boss. Don’t cross them! This group can hold a grudge. They can’t help themselves and their blindspots are obvious to everyone but themselves.
How To Deal With A Bad Boss
The best advice from the article is to document the encounter. The author states,
Documenting the “bad” and “ugly” helps you defend against what’s been said unfairly or not, she says. “Let’s say you have a performance evaluation and certain things are said, you want to be prepared and not forget about your answer to that in defense of yourself…” You may need this information at a later date. Don’t underestimate this advice especially if you have a pushy boss!
Therefore, some advice I would offer is to talk to them after you’ve documented a few of the difficult encounters. Believe it or not, even a pushy boss wants a motivated team; and, wants you to be as productive as possible. If his or her behavior is adversely affecting your results it will show up in your interactions.
How To Confront My Bad Boss
You really only have two options:
- Talk to your supervisor, or
- Get a different job
Your manager wants results usually above anything else. All managers evolve as leaders. They usually begin with a stick (coercion), work from the position of expert and progress to the carrot (rewards). It is the seasoned leader who learns to use the right stick – a baton as a conductor. For more on this, check this out.
So you can wait them out or you can work it out. You must act if for no other reason your health. A pushy boss can cause a lot of stress in the workplace. For your own happiness and productivity you must act.