Three Great Ways to Infuriate the Boss and Shoot Your Career in the Foot

Photo credit: © Corepix | Dreamstime.com

Looking to set your advancement back a square or three?  I’ll tell you how.

Whether it’s fair or not, one person has more to do with your future career than anyone else—your boss.  Oh sure, there are ways around that person’s influence.  I understand there are also ways to survive a tsunami.  But that doesn’t mean the next time I go to Malaysia I’m leaving my water wings at home.

If you’ve decided that solid careers and financial stability are for sissies, here are three ways to infuriate your boss and put a smoking hole in your own foot:

1. Be two-faced. Remember Eddie Haskell, Wally’s annoying friend on “Leave It to Beaver”?  Eddie was always over-the-top with the good-boy routine to Mrs. Cleaver’s face:  “My, what a lovely dress you’re wearing today, Mrs. Cleaver!” But the moment her back was turned, Eddie was the head demon in charge of undercutting all she stood for.

If you want to commit an unforgiveable sin, badmouth the boss’ idea by the water cooler right after you told him how much you loved it.  Or be a good solider right up until the going gets tough, then bail.  Being Eddie Haskell is the best way possible to ensure that your boss will never, ever trust you again.

2.  Let the boss get blindsided by bad news. People who want to avoid surprising the boss go out of their way to communicate news, both good and bad.  If the boss gets bad news, especially about your work, especially from another department, and you didn’t tell him or her first—you’re dead.  You will have made the boss look like he or she is out of control and out of touch with the team.  It will also be waaay too late to quietly fix things.  You will have become part of the problem.  If that’s what you were after, well done.  Otherwise, yeesh.

3.  Make excuses. Bosses are looking for solutions, period.  If you want your boss to see you as completely disconnected from his concerns, start blathering on about what happened that MADE you miss the meeting, or whose fault a mistake ACTUALLY was.  HE DOESN’T CARE.  I promise he doesn’t.  So if terminally annoying the boss is your goal, don’t own a mistake or help look for a solution.  Just make excuses.

If by chance you decide NOT to alienate the person who can do your career the most harm or good, limit yourself to one face, keep the boss informed, and give your excuses to the dog.

Well—depending on the breed.