Recognising red flags in your boss’s behaviour is important to understanding a toxic work environment. Recognising these behaviours and communicating your concerns can solve your workplace problems without you having to leave your job. Here are 10 signs you may have a difficult or narcissistic boss:
- Your boss micromanages and monitors your work but refuses to delegate tasks.
- Your boss pressures you and puts you under an enormous amount of stress that causes burnout.
- Your boss expects too much from you. This can include work hours and workloads that make you feel overwhelmed and overworked.
- You always feel like you are walking on eggshells with them and never know what mood they will be in.
- Your boss creates an unpleasant work environment, whether that be from tension or fear.
- Your boss is incapable of managing their time with their workloads or meetings.
- Your boss talks about other employees behind their backs to you.
- Your boss is intolerant of simple and small mistakes (everyone makes mistakes).
- Your boss shows no sympathy towards your mental health or personal issues.
- Your boss passes your ideas and achievements off as their own.
These traits in a boss can make your workplace a very uncomfortable and negative environment to be in. Subsequently, this can affect your mental health, your productivity, and your morale. Here are some suggestions to improve your problems with your boss without having to leave your job.
Avoid getting angry at your boss
It can be difficult to stay calm and patient when your boss gives you a reason not to. Staying the bigger person in these situations will ensure you stay in control of your emotions and keep you the better person. It’s important to not allow other people’s actions to affect how you react to certain situations.
Schedule a meeting with your boss
Reach out to your difficult boss and address your concerns head-on. Being open with communication and with your concerns might make the world of difference. Your boss may not realise their behaviour is damaging and might try to rectify this immediately if it is made known to them!
Reach out to co-workers
Your co-workers may feel the same about the situation and you may be able to talk to them about your concerns. Having someone in a similar situation that you can relate to can help you offload your worries. You also may be able to encourage them to speak to your boss to encourage a change in their behaviour.
What next?
So, you’ve spoken to your boss and you’re hoping for a change. Here are some traits that a good boss should portray:
- Your boss should give you clear guidance.
- Give you acknowledgement and credit for ideas and achievements.
- Keep constant communication with your progress.
- Provide constructive feedback.
- Your boss should be able to empathise with your personal problems and your mental well-being.
- Be able to delegate tasks and trust you to complete them correctly.
- Encourage employees to work as part of a team to achieve clear goals.
If you have tried your best with your boss but the behaviour isn’t changing, you might consider moving job as a last resort. Don’t feel forced out by a bad boss, but sometimes you must put your mental health first. We have a range of roles you can browse and apply for at s1jobs if you decide a new job is for you.