Smart Money's fifth tip for getting your boss to love you is to ask for help. It shows humility, a desire to learn, and is a subtle form of flattery. An architect from Kansas City says junior associates who seek advice perform better and advance faster than those who try and handle everything by themselves.
Don't ask questions just to ask questions. If you bring every problem to your boss you may look lazy and not have any iniative. Smart subordinates exhaust every resource before going to the boss, but when all fails, it's ok to ask!
For more tips on how to get your boss to love you, see Smart Money Magazine's Oct. 2009 issue.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Be a Conduit - 4th Tip To Make Your Boss Love You!
As they rise up the ranks, many supervisors and managers get less and less important feedback about what is going on in the office. When you and your co-workers gather round the water cooler to chat, conversation dries up when a supervisor or manager comes around.
Because of that, many supervisors or managers appreciate it when employees keep them in the loop. That's why Smart Money Magazine says that acting as a conduit to your boss can make you more valuable in the work place.
We aren't talking about "tattling", "gossip" or some of the petty stuff that can occur. Smart Money says managers can appreciate cluing them in on festering problems, mis-communication, and when the troops are confused or misinformed. One executive says he loves it when an employee will ask a question in a meeting that everyone else is afraid to ask but that doesn't mean you should ask questions designed to put your supervisor on the spot.
Good leaders worry about overlooking unpleasant truths in the office. You can help them out.
For more tips on how to make your boss love you, see the Oct. 2009 issue of Smart Money Magazine.
Because of that, many supervisors or managers appreciate it when employees keep them in the loop. That's why Smart Money Magazine says that acting as a conduit to your boss can make you more valuable in the work place.
We aren't talking about "tattling", "gossip" or some of the petty stuff that can occur. Smart Money says managers can appreciate cluing them in on festering problems, mis-communication, and when the troops are confused or misinformed. One executive says he loves it when an employee will ask a question in a meeting that everyone else is afraid to ask but that doesn't mean you should ask questions designed to put your supervisor on the spot.
Good leaders worry about overlooking unpleasant truths in the office. You can help them out.
For more tips on how to make your boss love you, see the Oct. 2009 issue of Smart Money Magazine.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Third Tip To Make Your Boss Love You!
SmartMoney magazine's third tip to make your boss love you is to defuse a bad situation. A Harvard Business Review study confirmed that most supervisors form an impression of a subordinate within five days. - an "in-group" and an "out-group". Once an employee gets lumped into an "out-group", the supervisor will NOT take note of their accomplishments but instead looks for failures that reinforce the initial impression.
What to do if you suspect you are in the "out-group"? Ask for a meeting with your supervisor and have a frank discussion. The supervisor will not call the meeting - they hate confrontation as much as the next guy, so you have to ask for it. Taking the initiative and calling the meeting is a huge source of relief. Don't whine - "you don't like me", - but rather come armed with a list of job objectives you haven't met, pinpoint reasons you aren't making the mark, and offer suggestions while asking for help. This can work for one-time CLM's (career limiting moves) as well.
Go to the October 2009 SmartMoney for the full article.
What to do if you suspect you are in the "out-group"? Ask for a meeting with your supervisor and have a frank discussion. The supervisor will not call the meeting - they hate confrontation as much as the next guy, so you have to ask for it. Taking the initiative and calling the meeting is a huge source of relief. Don't whine - "you don't like me", - but rather come armed with a list of job objectives you haven't met, pinpoint reasons you aren't making the mark, and offer suggestions while asking for help. This can work for one-time CLM's (career limiting moves) as well.
Go to the October 2009 SmartMoney for the full article.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Make Your Boss Love You - Empathize
Smart Money magazine (Oct. 2009) says the second way to make your boss love you is to empathize -- put yourself in your manager's shoes which can take the sting out of bad boss behavior. Why? Studies show that there is one underlying fear that most supervisors' have - fear of looking bad to their superiors. When a boss is demanding, irritable, critical or stubborn, chances are it's not you. They are probably upset about something else -- like a big presentation, offer to help.
Recently in my own office, not that I am EVER demanding, irritable, critical or stubborn, I was having a particularly bad day. I unjustly snapped a couple times at my employees for pretty small insignificant things. At lunch, one of them went and bought me a bottle of wine and put it the office refrigerator in case my day didn't get better. It was a wonderful gesture, it put me in a good mood because I was touched that she was concerned and my day got better. Small gestures mean a lot.
Recently in my own office, not that I am EVER demanding, irritable, critical or stubborn, I was having a particularly bad day. I unjustly snapped a couple times at my employees for pretty small insignificant things. At lunch, one of them went and bought me a bottle of wine and put it the office refrigerator in case my day didn't get better. It was a wonderful gesture, it put me in a good mood because I was touched that she was concerned and my day got better. Small gestures mean a lot.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Bad Customer Service
A US News and World Report survey claims that 68% of customers leave because of an attitude of indifference on the part of an employee. Just last weekend, I went to pick up a floral order from a local grocery store. The order was wrong, and instead of apologizing, the clerk kept insisting it wasn't their fault because whoever took the order (one of their employees) wrote it down incorrectly. Duh-huh. Then, she looks at me and says, "we'll your order won't be as nice because we'll have to use more flowers". This puzzled me because I have been buying this particular floral arrangement for 8 years and have always gotten something very nice for my $40. So anyway, I left, pretty steamed. When I pick my correct order up and if it is pretty puny, I'll contact the store manager. All she had to say was "I'm sorry, we goofed up, but will make it right".
It's not that hard!
It's not that hard!
Monday, October 19, 2009
10 Ways To Make Your Boss Love You!
Smart Money magazine has a great article in the October 2009 issue titled 10 Ways to Make Your Boss Love You. Pick up an issue for the complete article, but I will try and summarize it over the next few blogs.
No. 1 Put in the Hours - When It Counts. We are all doing more with less but studies show that most employers don't care how many hours an employee has to work, as long as they get the job done. Yes, late nights or a sacrified weekend in a crunch is ok. If it's just for "show", your employer may wonder why you can't finish your work in the same amount of time it takes everyone else. And don't brag about it. You'll look self serving and no one like a martyr.
No. 1 Put in the Hours - When It Counts. We are all doing more with less but studies show that most employers don't care how many hours an employee has to work, as long as they get the job done. Yes, late nights or a sacrified weekend in a crunch is ok. If it's just for "show", your employer may wonder why you can't finish your work in the same amount of time it takes everyone else. And don't brag about it. You'll look self serving and no one like a martyr.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Would You Post It In Front of Your Mother?
This blog is courtesy of our new Drake Intern, Betsy Heath.
There’s an old saying that if you wouldn’t do it, speak it, or act it out in front of your mother, you think twice about it in public. The same is true for social media websites. Networking sites such as Facebook and Myspace are prime targets for employers to weed out those applying for a job. If there is one position open, and ten qualified applicants to choose from, where will they start? You guessed it! The Internet. Anyone with an inappropriate Facebook picture or video will be the first to go. This shows employers that you aren’t serious about your future. Make sure your social networking pages stay ‘employer-friendly.’
If you just got scared enough into deleting the ‘inappropriate’ pieces off of your wall, that isn’t enough. Just because it isn’t on your page anymore doesn’t mean it isn’t still out there. You better believe that it will show up down the road when you least expect it. Take precautions to make sure that you are only in situations that won’t harm your job-hunt. Don’t allow people to take pictures of you doing embarrassing things because you know you will be tagged tomorrow morning. Be smart, clean up your networking pages!
There’s an old saying that if you wouldn’t do it, speak it, or act it out in front of your mother, you think twice about it in public. The same is true for social media websites. Networking sites such as Facebook and Myspace are prime targets for employers to weed out those applying for a job. If there is one position open, and ten qualified applicants to choose from, where will they start? You guessed it! The Internet. Anyone with an inappropriate Facebook picture or video will be the first to go. This shows employers that you aren’t serious about your future. Make sure your social networking pages stay ‘employer-friendly.’
If you just got scared enough into deleting the ‘inappropriate’ pieces off of your wall, that isn’t enough. Just because it isn’t on your page anymore doesn’t mean it isn’t still out there. You better believe that it will show up down the road when you least expect it. Take precautions to make sure that you are only in situations that won’t harm your job-hunt. Don’t allow people to take pictures of you doing embarrassing things because you know you will be tagged tomorrow morning. Be smart, clean up your networking pages!
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