Frances Horibe's

Talking to Your Boss about Being Trapped in a Job We’ve discussed when being too good at your job can impede your career. This can occur when your boss has a dog-in-the-manger view of good staff; he wants to keep them even if they don’t want to be kept. It results in a feeling of being trapped. Whether to talk to your boss about feeling trapped It’s an option. With some real benefits. If he truly didn’t realize you were unhappy, you two could discuss a path which suits you both. However, and this is a big however, your boss may know what he’s doing and will respond defensively when it is raised. Look at your boss in other situations. When things go wrong, does he look for a scapegoat? In meetings, does he let others talk or lay down the law? Do you know to watch your ps and qs with him to avoid offending? Things like this should make you think twice. Let your gut be your guide. The conversation You’ve decided that, for all his bluster, your boss is a good enough guy you think he’ll listen. I’ll run through a possible conversation, with commentary on the…

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…

Getting Your Ideas Heard We’ve been discussing dealing with the theft of your idea by a co-worker. The discouraging truth seems to be that it’s very hard to win this battle. So, instead you need to win the war and get your ideas heard. A much more positive way to approach this is to become the go-to idea guy. That is, the person the boss expects to come up with original ideas. First, of course, you have to have the innovative ideas to pitch. That I can’t help you with. If you do not typically come up with new takes, then I’d make my mark in some other way. Otherwise, you’ll end up like Emmett. But having the idea is not enough. You’ve got to get the powers-that-be excited about it. Getting new ideas adopted Again, if you generally work with a good group, you can create that excitement by having lots of colleagues sharing your enthusiasm. This is by far the preferable way to interest your boss. However, if you are in a group with one or more confirmed idea-stealers, you might want to answer the following questions as a way to pitch your idea to your boss. Is…