There’s a pretty good chance that if you’ve got a job, you’re keen to keep it. Saying the wrong thing to your boss could be fatal for your career progression. Here’s how to avoid the wrath of The Man Behind The Glass.
Make a simple yet fundamental mistake when dealing with your boss and you could move one step closer to receiving a P45 in the post. We don’t want that to happen, so here – on the day Horrible Bosses hits the cinema screens here – are five tips to avoid ruining the relationship with that dude who’s the most important person in your life for 40-odd hours a week.
Don’t split hairs or clockwatch
It may not be in your job description, and you may be required to work beyond your allotted ours, but think before you give out.
If you’re going to go by the letter of the law, can you be absolutely sure that while at work you’ve not checked Facebook, you’ve had a quick non-work-related surf of the web or you’ve not made or received a personal phone call?
Depending on what time you read this, there’s a fair chance you’ll have committed all of the above workplace digressions today. Unless you don’t work in an office, in which case there’ll be other unauthorised things you’ll have done.
If you plan to grumble, be prepared for the boss to bite back. And they’ve got sharper teeth.
Your boss is not your friend
You and your boss should not be Facebook friends, regardless of how friendly you may be. They’ll see that you logged in and made a comment during work time. They’ll know what you’re doing when you’re meant to be off sick. They’ll read comments made on your wall by your amusing friends that you’d rather they didn’t.
And it works the other way – do you really want confirmation that your boss has bad taste in casual clothes and that their friends are a bunch of knobs?
Remember: last night you stayed in and had an early night
Don’t discuss what went on the night before if you went out and had a skinful. Not only does it mean that you’ve alerted them to the possibility that you won’t be performing at your best, you’re also effectively saying: “I knew I’d have to get up and do a full day’s work today, but it wasn’t so important that it stopped me in any way from having a night of oblivion. Being on top form for work isn’t so important to me. Frankly, I couldn’t give a shit.”
By the way, if you’re out on a work night and the boss is with you NEVER stay out later than they do. No boss is going to give you a hard time for saying that you need to leave early because you’ve a busy day ahead and want to be fresh in the morning.
Don’t outdo your boss
It’s OK to aspire to be them, but don’t ever wear a better suit, drive a better car (even if you borrowed it/stole it) or go somewhere better than they go on holiday.
You want a pay rise one day; you do not want them to question if they’re paying you too much.
Don’t diss your boss to your colleagues
They are your colleagues, but think of them more as recording devices who have a tendency to depress their play button whenever even slightly leaned on by the boss. Don’t say bad things about your boss to them unless you want it to be replayed.
Unfortunately, and even if they’re good intentioned, your leaned-on work pal will almost invariably get things slightly wrong and makes things sound worse than you intended and a glib comment made in haste will sound like a fully formed attempt at deposing your boss.
If a boss hears something bad through a third party they’ll probably behave as if you’ve stood up on your desk to announce to the whole company any grievance you may have. Or worse – if you decide to broadcast your thoughts loudly and publically at least they’ll not think you’re sneaky.
[Main picture via Ziggy_Mo/Flickr Creative Commons]
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