We tend to be pretty thoughtful when it comes to life-altering decisions. We’ll spend hours researching neighborhoods to buy a home. We investigate what schools our children should attend. Hours are spent deciding which bank to get a loan from. Yet that same diligence is missing when it comes to picking a boss. For that reason, many people end up with a boss they don’t, or can’t, respect. If you don’t jump out of bed Monday mornings as happy and excited as you do on Fridays, chances are you don’t respect your boss, and that is a huge career mistake.
Too many people chase after “ideal” career paths that will take them to a corner office at their dream job or company. Their pursuit of a prestigious role and corresponding salary that says, “I’ve arrived,” is full of hidden sacrifices.
The long hours worked causes them to miss out on personal and family time. Because of the long hours worked, time goes by quickly. Before they realize it, years have gone by, they hate their co-workers, and their boss doesn’t respect them. Now they are stuck, and that dream of a perfect job with the ideal company has become a nightmare.
When you spend your career chasing a path, you miss an exponential opportunity for real career fulfillment and advancement. Instead of falling victim to this common career mistake, chase after a boss you admire. Here are the benefits of working for a boss you respect.
Respect a boss who empowers you.
If you have ever worked for a micromanager, you understand the soul-crushing feeling that results from working for one. Having a micromanaging boss is beyond annoying and will stunt your professional growth. Micromanaging bosses suffer from a high-level of anxiety. Sometimes they do so because they enjoying displaying their power over others, regardless of why they do it, micromanaging bosses are no one to admire.
Having a boss who shares decision-making with you and provides you with the tools and resources to do your job is one you can respect. When a boss empowers you, they are clear on their expectations. They open the door by being approachable when you need them. A boss you can respect makes sure you have a seat at the table when making important decisions.
They are exceptional coaches.
Coaching improves how we do the tasks required for our job. It helps us develop professional maturity and is the most powerful tool for career development. Coaching comes in many forms, such as one-to-ones, feedback, and roleplay. If you can’t remember when the last time your boss provided specific feedback, your boss isn’t coaching. When you find yourself getting low review scores time and again, your boss isn’t coaching. Does your boss multi-task during your one-to-one? If so, they are a terrible coach. The number of bosses with poor coaching skills is staggering, so chances are you have worked for one.
Your boss is an exceptional coach when they don’t sit on the sidelines, hiding in their office. At the same time, they don’t jump into the game and start playing for you. Bosses with exceptional coaching skills provide the right amount of guidance and support while stretching your capabilities. They help you activate qualities that lay dormant within you. Bosses with extraordinary coaching skills believe in you even when you don’t believe in yourself. They coach to your hard skills, just the same as your soft skills. If your boss is a great coach, they are one to respect. You will respect them because they provide you with the right amount of praise and constructive feedback that brings out the best in you.
Respect your boss if they meet you where you are.
As hard as it is to believe, there are still bosses out there who treat everyone on their team the same. Regardless of knowledge, training, accomplishments, or tenure, everyone gets the same training, coaching, and development. You can’t respect a boss who has a one-size-fits-all approach to the way they help you manage your career.
However, having a boss who meets you where you are by providing the right amount of guidance and support when you need it builds deep trust. They ensure you are learning, which helps you grow. They don’t hold your hand, or put you in a sink or swim situation. These bosses check-in frequently to make sure you are on track. For that reason, having a boss meet you where you are is a boss you can respect.
There are no obvious favorites when you have a boss worthy of admiring.
Working for a boss who plays favorites sucks. No matter what you do, how hard you work, or how much you deliver, you won’t get far in your career working for this type of boss. Bosses who play favorites will put their favorites on parade, helping them build their network and advance their career, often without merit. It obliterates morale, creates us vs. them attitudes, and is divisive. Nothing kills office morale faster than a boss who plays favorites.
If you can’t figure out who the boss’s favorite is, your reward will equal your effort. Having a boss who freely gives their time to every team member, sets everyone up for success, and fosters an inclusive environment demonstrates they don’t play favorites. Respect your boss if they care more about what people bring to the team, the company, and the results they deliver than they do their personal feelings for them.
A boss you can respect will hold themselves accountable above all else.
Throughout your career, you will have your fair share of bosses who point fingers to find blame. They frequently explain away mistakes by making their team look incompetent. Having a boss who fails to take accountability definitely shouldn’t be admired. Nothing takes my breath away like a boss complaining about how poor their team is performing, or how inadequate they are for their role. How they don’t realize talking about their team in this manner reflects more on them than it does their employee is beyond me.
When you have a boss who admits their failings, they are a boss you can respect because bosses who accept the blame create a safe work environment. You won’t waste time fretting over being their scapegoat, and you will be motivated to own your mistakes. They follow through on their commitments and narrow the gap between what they say they’ll do and what they accomplish. They have your back when the pressure is on, and they will quickly change the conversation when someone creates a story of you that is based on opinion rather than fact.
Respect your boss if they care enough to challenge you.
Work should stimulate and excite you. Work should ignite your passion, but that can’t happen if your job isn’t challenging you. It is easy to stay under the radar at work. Day after day, you go to work, do the minimum to get by, and collect a paycheck. If your goal is to be stuck in a dead-end job, keep working for a boss that doesn’t challenge you.
A boss who cares enough to recognize you are ready to take on more challenging work is a boss to respect. They offer stretch assignments and provide opportunities for you to shine in front of other executives. Your boss cares when they are aware of your comfort zone and gently pushes you outside of it. When your boss checks in with you to ensure you feel challenged, it is a tangible demonstration of how much they care about you.
When you fail to plan, you are planning to fail. Put more thought into the boss you choose to avoid ending up with one you can’t admire. When you work for a boss you respect, you can’t help but to show up and give genuine effort. That effort will pay off in the long run.
Working for a boss you respect keeps you motivated when your career is developing slower than you’d planned. It keeps you moving forward if the monetary reward is less than you expected. Best of all, working for a boss you admire is like adding a shot of espresso to your career development, and that is how you get the corner office with the prestigious role and pay that says “you’ve arrived.”
Last updated on July 21st, 2020 at 06:36 am
