Boss 2 : Does your Boss see you as his competitor ?

The title may sound strange, but it’s true in many cases. If you have considerable experience and worked with many bosses, you may have encountered this situation at least once. There are very few bosses who possess real Leadership skills. By this, i really mean that your Boss knows his boundaries, makes sure you know your boundaries, stands as an exemplary character and knows how to push your career in the right direction. Many Bosses i see are raising from the Juniors levels in the respective industry. That means they are struggling to juggle their core expertise and the desire to exhibit management skills and get recognized as a “Manager”.

While everyone agrees that healthy competition within and outside the organization is good for everyone, there are mixed feelings as to whether your Boss should see you as his competitor. Some of the managers are very paranoid about their own position or sometime they don’t understand the value of growth.

Growth Satisfaction : This is the most dangerous reason that would make the team frustrated about the work and the company. This sort of Boss thinks that he achieved a lot in his life and basically he is content with his position. He sees everyone working under him also as achievers. If one shows enthusiasm to do little extra, Boss thinks that it’s not necessary to do any thing other than their responsibility. He tries to shun the growth of the team-member by not letting this Ideas and communication some out of this team-member directly.

Boss does not even understand the fact  that the team-member needs recognition and wants to grow up in the ladder. The mere satisfaction of Boss could make him ignorant of others enthusiasm to grow.  Unless the situation is too bad, very few people would like to work with this kind of Boss. Or in the extreme case, the entire team is content with what they do.

Paranoid : Some situations, circumstances and timely decisions make this guy as Boss. May not be a perfect fit for the job but will do. This Boss never imagined he would get this position and he would like to keep it whatever happens. He starts suspecting his team, even if they go to a Coffee shop. Every suggestion that comes from the team undergoes a high scrutiny.

In most cases, these kind of Bosses may not possess great decision powers. So, working for them is like working for “Free”. No promotion, No reward, No bonus and No appreciation. Even if the team-member is capable, his Boss does not think so. Every effort that team-member makes to grow in and out of team becomes useless with the lack of the support by Boss. After all, everyone wants to respect his/her Boss and not By-pass. Even if one by passes his Boss, this can not continue for a long time as the Super-Boss wants to hear it from the Boss too.

Athlete : This is the name given by me and it is not a Management term. Your Boss is like an Athlete. He is highly skilled, fast paced and does not care about the others. He wants to be the first one to do anything. If the team-member wants to join him in the race, he will allow him to join the race as long as team-member is behind the Boss. This Boss is interested in only his growth and does not care whats happening to his team.

This kind of Boss is moving ahead is a fast pace. So, team-member will hopefully get a manager who understands them in future.

Guru : This kind of Boss is the one anyone would remember for their life time. This Boss teaches you, inspires you and recognizes the talent in you. He acts as a channel for your talent and you will be known to everyone inside and outside the team. He does not consider you as his competition, rather he thinks this as an opportunity for BOTH of you to grow. he works on a simple principle, “If YOU grow, I grow”.

In the end, it is not about, Good, Bad, Ugly. But, it is about how you take the situation and turn it into opportunity. Consciously knowing the nature of you Boss makes you better prepared for the situations. I am sure many of you would have had various experiences. Would like to hear your experiences too.