How Well Do You Know Your Boss?

On a scale of 1 to 10, how well do you think you know your boss?

Let’s test that with a short quiz. See how many questions you know the answer to:

1. What is his preferred communication style (e.g. fast-paced or slow-paced, structured or unstructured)?
   
   
2. How does she make decisions (deliberately/logically or more reactionary/by gut)?
   
   
3. How does he respond to pressure? How does he handle stress?
   
   
4. What irritates or angers her? What are her hot buttons?
   
   
5. What things at work make him really happy?
   
   
6. What things is she really good at?
   
   
7. What things is he not good at? Bonus: Does he know he’s not good at them?
   
   
8. What things does she like to do? Hate to do?
   
   
9. Does he tend to micromanage or delegate responsibilities & authority?
   
   
10. What are her biases and blind spots?
    
    
11. Does he more often share or more often conceal information?
    
    
12. Can your boss provide good input on account strategy?
    
    
13. What’s your boss’s background? How did she get to be the boss?
    
    
14. What are the biggest challenges he’s dealing with right now? What pressure is being put on him?
    
    
15. Who are her allies & enemies in the organization?
    
    
16. Is he comfortable & confident in your presence or does he see you as a threat? Does he trust you?
    
    
17. What’s the best way to deliver bad news to her?
    
    
18. Is your boss good at boosting your spirits or depressing them?
    
    
19. Can your boss help you career advice?
    
    
20. What are the top 3 most-important things to your boss?

How well did you do? If you knew the answers to all 20 questions, congratulations are in order.

But the bigger question is how does knowing your boss help you?

First, anyone who has ever had a poor working relationship with a boss can tell you having a good one makes your life so much easier. So much so that not having a good relationship with your boss is always a top reason why people quit.

And, the first step to a good relationship is knowing where your boss is coming from. Even if your style and personality are widely different, you can still work well together. Just like with clients.

Second, knowing your boss’s preferences makes you more productive. You don’t waste time by pushing in a way that gets pushback. Persuasion is about alignment, not arguing. So, you adapt to his style, not push to have him adapt to yours.

Managing your boss is not about fixing them. It’s about guiding them in a frictionless way. You’ll be happier and more productive and so will they.

Here’s something you can do to build the best relationship you can with your boss:

(1.) Pick out 2-3 things you don’t know but would like to know about your boss and find out the answers directly from them or even thru someone else who knows them better.

(2.) Create a reminder-sheet for yourself for the best way to interact with your boss in different situations. We keep files on our client’s preferences. Why wouldn’t we do the same with someone we work with?

Until next time…

Bob