Walking on the Right

Eggshells: Learning How

to Anticipate the Moods
of Your Boss

I had a boss once who constantly screamed at me for doing my job. My

position required me to deal with the media, but he hated the press.

Whenever I spoke with them, he criticized me for doing my job.

I think this was a perfect example of an executive who knew he needed a

person in a particular position because it was expected of a company of that

size, but didn’t understand the real purpose for the job – and certainly didn’t

see it as being necessary for success.

Because I genuinely liked and respected this man, I put up with his less than

stellar behavior. However, I did not hesitate to argue with him when he threw

his hissy fits.

Unfortunately, most people don’t have this luxury.

 In a perfect world, all of our bosses would be understanding, smart,

compassionate, and reasonable. However, that hope is not just realistic. Most

bosses are focused on the overall needs of the company – budget, profit,

staff, and reputation. While you may have all the same goals, your ideas of

achieving success may not meld with his.

It’s important to realize that a misunderstanding with your boss – even as

overblown as those I had with my former boss – is not the end of the world,

and certainly not the end of your tenure with a company. However, short of

filing a lawsuit, sometimes the only way of dealing with an over-anxious boss

is to just deal with him. There won’t be any professional consequences,

especially if you are right in the long run. But that doesn’t make it any easier

to deal with the emotional ramifications of these run-ins.

It may be my long history with a dysfunctional family, but I have to give my

parents kudos for my ability to anticipate mood shifts and to deal with temper

tantrums. I’m not talking about outright abuse: I really do mean petty, little

power plays. If your boss abuses you or your position, sue him. That move

may make your next job more difficult to get, but right is right.

My focus is really on bosses that don’t behave badly all the time, but are

prone to temporary fits of temper.

 Everyone should have a boss whose behavior fits all the textbooks, but

when your boss gets out of line, you have to make the decision whether to

deal with it. If your answer to the problem is to fight via the legal system,

know that you’re unlikely to be employed again without a lot of explanation;

it’s not legal to not hire someone because of a previous legal action, but with

so many candidates available for any given job, a prospective employer can

find about a billion reasons not to hire you. People are afraid of people who

file lawsuits, because it costs them money when it happens to them.

The main point you need to realize is that if your boss is a little vehement in

questioning your work, it’s probably not personal. Make that your mantra –

it’s just business, it’s just business – and you’re going to find it a lot easier to

get from day to day. And when your boss has the opportunity to recommend

someone for promotion, he’ll probably remember the employee who faced his

wrath head-on, rather than running for help.

Dave Saunders helps people stand out and "Be the Brand" as a personal

branding and marketing specialist. Manage your career online: Create,

Enhance and Share a better resume, free at VisualCV.com