Last week we talked about how important it was for you to create a great relationship with your boss—assuming the best and owning the responsibility of having a great relationship.
We talked about how for more than 75% of employees, dealing with their immediate supervisor is the most stressful part of their job and the research that shows that half of employees have a shaky relationship with their boss.
Let’s cover several more ideas about how to make a better relationship with your boss.
Take yourself lightly—and your results seriously
You’re boss’s boss demands results and so therefore…well, that means you need to produce results. Stay playful and fun AND make sure you hit your deadlines and your goals. That’s the job.
Next: Be Dependable
If the project is due at 3:00 every Thursday, then, well, it’s due at 3:00 every Thursday…Even if it’s your busiest week for the year. Even if you have a hang nail. It’s just plain due at 3:00 on Thursday.
You shouldn’t need reminders and cajoling to get your work done—if the work is due, the work is due. If the outcome is defined, then find a way to hit the outcome.
Simple. Easy. Just be dependable.
Next, be genuine.
There’s a funky thing that happens when someone isn’t performing. They become disingenuous. They start looking for people to blame. On the top of the list is always—the boss.
But it’s not the boss who isn’t performing. It’s you. So, stay sincere and stay humble. Deal with it by being authentic and ask for the help you need. We all get off track. Character is revealed by how we handle those situations.
And next, be resourceful.
Learned helplessness is a growing phenomenon—you see it all the time. People who say, “Well, I don’t know how to do that so I stopped.”
Well, here’s an important distinction. You weren’t hired to quit…you were hired to persevere. In a world where Google gives you almost every answer to every question within seconds, there is no reason to stop. Even if you can’t access Google, you still can be resourceful.
Next, anticipate needs.
A friend told me once how he moved up the ladder with record speed to become the assistant to the General. He started in the mail room. And while dropping the mail for the general said, “General, if you’d like, I can open the mail and draft an initial response to every piece and then make the changes based on what you tell me to do.”
After just a few letters, he was advanced to one of the top positions in the army. He anticipated needs.
How can you find ways to add more value and anticipate the needs of your supervisor?
Start applying these 11 ways to improve your relationship with your boss and watch your career blossom.
This is the second in your most recent posts where I find problems with your recordings based on what you have posted in your blog. There was a section on Anticipating Needs that was missed altogether in your recording. Of course I can read for myself, but I just hate the way it reflects on your company. I do enjoy your posts and look forward to future posts, but you might be served well for someone else to review them before they go out to make sure they line up.
Thank you.