Frances Horibe's

Avoiding the Dangers of Being Too Good at Your Job The answer is not, of course, to start being bad at your job. That really is cutting your nose off to spite your face. And I am assuming you are keeping your eye on the job ads. While you are doing that, there are other options to try to address the issue. Avoiding talking to your boss? This is where the assessment of jerkiness comes in. If you can see that your boss is demanding but fair; if he doesn`t suffer fools gladly but gives praise when merited; if he yells in anger but also in excitement—this might be a boss you can talk to. However, if he is kind of mean-spirited or petty or if he is a follow-the-rules-no-matter-what type, you might not want to. It`s a judgment call. If you`re doubtful, I would tend not to. Because I want to cover the other two points, I will do a separate post on how to have the discussion with your boss on this if you think it might be productive. Train others You probably get a lot of recognition from how skilled you are at your job. You may…

Is Your Boss Impeding Your Career? Good bosses do not impede employees’ careers. Good bosses give you opportunities to prepare you for the next big step. Good bosses coach and encourage. However, good bosses are like good people; they are not found everywhere. How do you know if your boss is being a jerk in this instance? Your boss ISN’T necessarily trying to impede your career if he: Is very demanding Often forgets to say thank you Won’t approve the time off for your dream vacation Even yells and screams Just because you dislike him for a particular reason doesn’t necessarily mean that he is out to stab you in the back. Look for a pattern Has your boss made it impossible for you to move onto some more interesting project/get skill-building training, etc. more than once? Just once may be exactly what he says—that you are too valuable at this particular point to let you go. But if it happens more than once, you may be experiencing this phenomenon. When you might legitimately expect pushback However, the timing may also be critical. For example, say you’ve been on the job for six months and have pulled off a brilliant…

The Dangers of Being Too Competent at Your Job Some people have the charming but erroneous belief that all they need to do to get ahead is be really competent at their jobs. I have discussed this in other posts, but I want to focus on a particular subset—when it can actually be bad for your career to be good. And you are left out in the cold. You note the boss did this by both flattering you and subtly implying you’re not a team player if you don’t endorse letting Jamie have the project. When being really competent is bad A couple of things have to kick in for this to happen but they are not that uncommon. Your boss sees you as instrumental to his success First, of course, you have to be good at your job. And often be the only one in your area who can do whatever you do as well as you do it (did that sentence make sense? I think it did—anyhow, you are very, very good). Because of this, you’re instrumental in your boss reaching his goals, so he needs your work even if he never admits it. But he knows. He…

A Risky Way to Leverage Your Boss Fighting with His The previous post outlined a way that you might be able to appease your boss Trevor if his boss, Jennifer, starts assigning you work. As I mentioned, might work, might not. Depends on how good Trevor is at maneuvering to get what he wants. A gutsy but risky way out was suggested by a friend[1]who is very politically astute. You: Hi, Jennifer. Got a moment? Jennifer: Matt! Ah, sure. You: You know, I love the assignments you’re assigning me. They’re really challenging. Jennifer: And you’re doing a great job. You: It’s just—and of course Trevor hasn’t said anything—I get the impression he finds the situation a bit awkward. Jennifer: Well, that’s too bad. You: Look, I don’t want to cause any hard feelings, so I was wondering whether you would consider giving me a temporary assignment reporting to you. Just for the duration. Jennifer: How would that help? You: Well, it would regularize the situation for Trevor and allow me to focus on your work. Jennifer: Hmm—not a bad idea. The Pros and Cons of this risky move If things go well, you are in the money. But it might…

When Your Boss is in a Fight with His In the previous post, your boss’ boss, Jennifer, was assigning work directly to you, skipping your boss (Trevor). On the one hand, this gives you great profile. On the other, it can get you into hot water with Trevor. Look at it from Trevor’s point of view. Jennifer is signaling she doesn’t consider him value-added. No matter how true, it would be hard not to resent that. In fact, the more true, the more it will be resented. Trevor can’t pick a fight with Jennifer (well, not if he has any political savvy), but he can take it out on you. Two things which bear repeating This is Jennifer’s problem which she is handling inappropriately. If you have a very collegial environment or a good boss, none of this may apply. But don’t assume that too quickly. Undercurrents are undercurrents because they’re hard to spot. If you’re not sure, I’d assume it is an issue. Okay, three. Trevor can hurt you and your career. Your concern is to avoid being the inadvertent instrument of humiliating Trevor. What to do when your boss is in a fight with his Well, obviously, it’s…