Here are my suggestions on the how. I don’t think anyone would argue it isn’t a smart thing to do. Managing your boss effectively means she is able to effectively focus on the things that matter most. This is better for you, your team and the organization.
Leadership Tips
Is it even possible to manage your boss? Sure it is. Managing is not just about telling people what to do. Managing others should include leadership by influencing, inspiring, recognizing and providing genuine feedback. It also includes understanding the weaknesses, strengths, personality styles, goals and needs of those you manage.
The other day I was asking my 12 year old son how basketball practice went (he is playing with a new year-round competitive team), and how he feels he is doing. He said, “Good.” That’s the typical answer I get from him, so I decided to dig a little deeper. I asked, “What does your coach say when you make a mistake?” His response was music to my ears, “He ask me if I know what I did wrong. I say yes, and that’s it.” I asked, “What happens if you make the same mistake again?” He said, “Then he helps me to get it right.”
Making mistakes at work is going to happen, right? How you handle employee mistakes is going to say a lot about you as a leader. I have seen my share of different ways of dealing with employee mistakes at work and they have run the gamut from shouting, to doing nothing.
You’ve seen them. You’ve been around them. You’ve probably had one of them. Heck, maybe you’ve been one; the leader that for some reason or another never finds the good in others. Instead of searching for the good in others they search for everything bad. Do they find it? You bet they do! Often times the leader doesn’t even realize that’s what he or she is doing.
