Ten Things Your Boss Expects of You, But Hasn’t Told
You.
By Kevin T. Colaner, Ed.D., Associate Vice President for
Student Services
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Adjunct Faculty, University of Southern California Rossier School of Education
Communication is central to any successful
relationship. Since we spend the
majority of our waking hours at work, it is imperative that we strive for
effective communication in the workplace.
Unfortunately, our bosses are not that different from other human beings
with whom we interact; they often do not make their intentions or expectations
clear.
In her book Fierce
Conversations: Achieving Success at Work & In Life, One Conversation at a
Time, Susan Scott reminds us that “conversations are the work of a leader
and the workhorses of an organization” (Scott, 2004, p. xix). Every conversation we have, whether with our
co-workers, family members, significant others or the students we serve, either
enhances our relationship or diminishes it.
Understanding this reality and acknowledging the importance of your
relationship with your supervisor, I have compiled a short list of lessons that
I have learned over the years about communicating with your boss. These lessons were gathered over the past 20
years from both “great” bosses and “not-so-great” bosses, from wonderful
experiences like NASPA’s institutes for new and mid-level professionals, and
even from drinks in an airport lounge with legends of our profession such as
Dr. Judith Chambers. It is my hope that
these lessons will help you build positive relationships as you build your
professional career.
1.
Simply carrying
your share of the work load is not enough.
Bosses, and even co-workers, like self-starters. Show gumption and take initiative -- don’t always
wait for instruction.
2.
Punctuality counts. It has been said that the better part of life
is simply showing up. Well, when it
comes to work, showing up ON TIME might be a better axiom. It is not enough to be on time physically,
but being on time with projects as well as with your presence is an important
sign of respect to your boss and your institution.
3.
Anticipate problems. You know they are going to happen, so don’t
look so surprised. There really is no
substitute for having your act together.
4.
Don’t make excuses. Your boss, colleagues, and students
understand that real issues of life and death occur. No one wants to know about every little
excuse or delay—it only adds to the nuisance of the problem.
5.
Take care of
your problems. Do not take problems
to your boss if others can help you solve them.
Only go to the boss if he or she is the only one who can help, and be
sure to go with alternatives. Be a
problem solver—not a problem magnet. **Caveat:
Do not hide problems from your boss either!
6.
Choose your
battles wisely. Not every issue is
worth fighting for (or getting fired for)! Consider how pertinent the issue is
to the greater good. Is there a chance
of winning? Is there room for give and
take? Should you choose to go to battle,
be sure to have a plan “B”. Just because
you fight for something, doesn’t mean you’ll win.
7.
Learn timing. If you want to win support, it is important
not to catch people in passing to ask a question. Know your boss’s style and how he or she likes
to be approached. Be prepared (this
involves anticipating problems). Look at
the big picture and determine a timeline that is best for the organization—not
just you.
8.
When staff members
are fighting, work is not getting done.
Your boss doesn’t really care whose fault it is, he or she simply wants
the issue resolved so that you and your colleagues will get back to work!
9.
Protect the
organization’s reputation and confidentiality. There are many laws, policies, regulations,
and ethical considerations that govern our work—be aware of them. A helpful tip is to never put anything in
writing that you wouldn’t mind seeing on the front page of your local or campus
newspaper.
10.
Learn to
translate language—both verbal and non-verbal. Much like in your other relationships, your
boss doesn’t always say what he or she means.
For example, when your parents said, “Where have you been at this hour?”
they were saying “You’re grounded!” When
your partner calmly comments, “I don’t care, you decide,” they really do care
and they are expecting you to draw on your years of experience together to pick
the color, restaurant, gift, etcetera that is to their liking.
Here are a few other translations
that might help you better understand your boss. When your boss asks, “If it’s not too much
trouble…” she means, “Do this.”
Similarly, when asked, “Would you mind…,” you should hear, “Do
this.” When your supervisor says, “Might
there be another way to approach this?”
he is really saying, “Do this my way.” And of course, when your boss
tells you, “I’ll take that under advisement,” the answer is “No.”
Over the years I have learned that when I have struggled
with communicating with my supervisor, it generally resulted from my failure to
keep the conversation going. The
conversation IS the relationship. In the
void of information and communication from you, your boss will try to fill in
the gaps with their own perceptions or past experiences. Communication is a two-way street, and with
all the advances in technology we routinely utilize (phones, faxes, emails,
texts, pod casts, blogs, etc.) it has become a super highway. It’s up to you to work with your boss to make
sure you are BOTH communicating effectively and getting what you need from the
conversation and thereby building a strong relationship.
