Tag: employer | The Caraires Consultancy

It’s never nice to have to accept that you’re the problem. However, there are two different routes you can go down once this becomes clear.

One will help you progress, flourish and ultimately become a better boss, and one will lead you down a path of anxiety and maybe even being fired. You can choose to lead into the criticism that’s floating around about you; you can choose to speak to your boss and your team and work out exactly what the issue is, and then work to overcome it; or you can choose to deny to yourself that there’s any issue at all, ignore what people are obviously saying and pretend it isn’t happening.

Which path do you believe will lead to success?

Yet the first step is to ascertain if there is an issue. One disgruntled employee’s opinion is not law, nor is a grumpy comment uttered when they didn’t think you were within earshot. It may be that you’re simply creating a mutiny out of nothing, so here’s how you tell.

1. You’re ignored

There are a few key signs that you simply aren’t liked as a manager and one is that you’re largely treated as if you weren’t there at all. Employees who hate their manager often just want them to go away, and presume that if they don’t make any contact, they’ll leave without having to endure a long conversation. This is especially true when large groups of employees are together – such as in breakout rooms or work gatherings.

2. You’re constantly disobeyed

It takes respect to command your own team. Those below you have to believe in your leadership to feel confident in actioning your decisions. If you find that you have to ask multiple times before anyone will do what you say, or that you receive constant push back and second-guessing before they finally relent, then you’re not receiving the respect that you crave.

3. You’re undermined

Workers will never trust the verdict of a boss who they believe is bad at their job. Often, even if you give them the information they’ve requested, they’ll either go above your head to ensure that it’s correct, or even go to a co-worker to verify your answer. Whilst this may seem innocent, by avoiding taking your advice, they’re essentially displaying how little confidence they have in your knowledge.

Believing that your boss is fundamentally wrong, yet being expected to action their commands, is a horribly conflicting situation to be in for any employee.

Whilst the truth is essential and ensuring that your team isn’t wasting valuable time based on false information is hugely important, disagreeing with the boss can be taken badly, and if it isn’t handled with subtlety and discretion, can result in some pretty grave consequences.

Obviously regardless of your boss’ management style or personality type, the last thing you want to do is embarrass them or appear to be insubordinate, as these are big red flags that may well affect your career going forward; as such, the issue should be approached in a very specific manner. The following five rules should serve as guidelines for manoeuvring the issue without causing concern.

1. Ensure that you’re correct

Nothing will lose your credibility in this situation faster than challenging your boss’ information without checking that you’re correct. Blindly trusting your own intuition without researching the data first smacks of arrogance and single-mindedness. You must ensure that you’re correct if you’re going to attempt to correct your boss.

2. Decide if it’s essential

There are some incorrect statements that we can all simply ignore. The very fact that your boss has stated incorrect data in itself does not require your attention. So, before you decide to do anything about it, you must use your own judgement to assess whether it is necessary at all. No, misquoting Shakespeare or using a malaprop in a speech doesn’t require correcting.

3. Assess the situation

If this is a company-wide meeting, do you really want to be the worker that interrupts your boss in front of all of these people? Is the information worth potentially being forever regarded as a ‘nit-picker’ or a contrarian? Again, if the information is being shared in a senior management meeting or in front of your boss’ boss, this probably isn’t the right time to bring this up. However, if the false information is shared in an informal Q&A session or in a more neutral environment, chances are on the spot is indeed the correct time and place to casually bring it up.

4. Consider your approach

As previously mentioned, if the situation is informal, casually recalling that the information was slightly different is probably the best approach, dependent on your boss’ temperament. If, however, the situation is more formal, it may be a good idea to convey the correct data through an email or a discrete phone call.

5. Language is everything

Under no circumstances should you use any condescending or confrontational buzzwords. For example, it’s never a good idea to accuse your boss of being ‘wrong’ or having ‘made a mistake’. Almost regardless of temperament, your boss is virtually guaranteed to be angry if you start accusing them. Instead, try to suggest that the data simply may be slightly different. Your goal should be to offer them a way of accepting the correction, without being backed into a corner. Remember, you’re on the same side – they should feel this too.

3 signs your team thinks you’re a terrible manager

It’s never nice to have to accept that you’re the problem. However, there are two different routes you can go down once this becomes clear.

Which path do you believe will lead to success?

1. You’re ignored

How to disagree with your boss – without getting fired

Believing that your boss is fundamentally wrong, yet being expected to action their commands, is a horribly conflicting situation to be in for any employee.