How to cope with a bad boss

Bad Boss,

to hear click on URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1X32fW_h30

This song start out with, "Sometimes the boss will be a thorn in your side" have a listen at URL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdhi7LXnVDo

another hockey fan you are right about our youth but beleive it or not, mature adults share in the distinction of being lazy as well. We live in a society now where people are allowed to come up with every excuse under the sun as to why they can not perform their jobs as required.

Are some of the so-called bad bosses really bad or are they just very focused and results driven. Most employees simply punch a clock to get a check, work in a job they don't really like and blame everyone else for their lack of motivation.

I beleive that before anyone makes a statement that their boss is bad should take a long hard look in the mirror. Is it really the boss or is it you!

My boss is an underminer, she asks for people to be on a committee, I am first to sign up, she schedules the meeting when I can't be there and then when she puts the names of the committee menbers in the newsletter she omits my name. I've got two words for her.
She manages by what I call "ostritch management". She hides her head in the sand. She says we are to work out our own differences because we are all adults. She is just copping out. Likes to play her guitar for patients and bop around all perky while staff dicker over why they have to pull so many weekend shifts and don't get raises on time because she's too busy to do your eval. etc. Unfortunately I only have a few yrs. left before retirement so don't really want to work any place else. It's way too hard starting over at my age. So, on I go, listening to all the gripe over and over and feeling helpless to do anything about it. I keep telling myself it could be worse. Don't really know how, but I guess it could be worse.

When I'm looking for a job, I shop for the economic strengh of the company. Then I ask around & get on the shift with the best boss to work with. If I get an abusive supervisor,I ask to be moved. If that's not possible, I complain to Personnel. If nothing changes,I get lawyered up while I look for another job. NEVER stay in any abusive relationship on the job or anywhere else.

A good web site to learn about bosses and employers is: jobvent.com
I have had a bosses for the pass year that couldn't manage their way out of a paper bag. They have their favorites and no one else gets an opportunity to "shine or grow". It's a terrible to have to spend 8 hours of your life (that you will never get back) working for these idiots. An employee wants to feel like they are contributing to something, they are appreciated and and a team player. It doesn't take much to make a person feel that way--once it's learned.. an employee with do anything for you. Who were these "bad managers" mentored by?

i just got promoted to being a boss and i had to go from being one of the co-wokers to laying down the law. LOL!! but i treat everyone with respect, when employees come to me with ideas that are good they get 100% credit (my ex boss had a nasty habit of taking credit for the employees ideas.
The hard part of my job is getting people to take me serious I'm a woman in a 100% male workforce on top of that its in the construction field, but i think time will prove to all of them that I do know my shit!

I've had my share pf abusive male bosses. I had a boss fire me because I took a day off for religious observances. By the way, I was a temp. I also had a boss who every day shouted out my name, unable to figure out how to start his computer. Every day. For two years. When I suggested he might want to remember his password, I was shown the door.

Times are critical right now and to leave a job now is 'professional suicide'. Sometimes you have grin and bear some things, now is one of those times. Look for another job, it is said 'it is easier to find a job when you have a job' these days I am not so sure. Anyhoo, be gratefull, try your best to learn for other's behaviors, make the best of a bad situation, so on, and so forth....easier said then done. Bottom line be grateful that you even have a j.o.b. (just over broke) these days. If you can't stand your boss, please give me to me...please, pretty please............

JON: Yes, I did not mean to exclude lazy adults as well. Many people (myself included) have performed in jobs they hated and their poor work quality showed. In my final corp job I had some really terrific male bosses (I know for a fact I work better for males than females) and while I know this should not make a difference, having a positive relationship with them was what made me want to perform and do the best I could.

I think if you hate your job and want to blame your boss for that, well, that's YOUR problem. If you are not the ONLY one with issues with your boss, chances are it's probably him/her. Eventually the truth comes out and if you are one of the good workers you will never be asked to leave, but will quit because you hate the environment. If you are one of the bad, you will get fired.

JON: That's funny you mention FLA because I will be living there (I split my time with my hubby up North and then down in FLA during the winter). again starting next month. Anyhow, to me, it makes perfect sense that someone would show up in flip flops and shorts, it's FLORIDA and that is beach mentality (I'm originally from Ca so I know about THAT mentality as well as the "entitlement" and it's all about status, etc) but don't get me wrong, it's still completely unacceptable, but laughable especially when they don't understand why you didn't hire them. When I lived there full time I was in the Tampa area, I worked at a large retail chain and some of those kids were the laziest little brats and then you'd get my boss who was young, but a very hard, mature worker. So, it will be interesting to see when I return to the Atlantic side if things will be worse because it's closer to the beaches. :-)

SUN2GO: Again, you have left another great post on this forum! I had to chuckle when I was reading it because I too TOTALLY cannot work for women (at least in a corp environment). The ones I did were: witches, wanted me to be their friends, ass-kisser and the last one decided that since she was having problems with a NANNY at home, she should take her anger out on me. I give her some kudos for at least apologizing to me in front of the team for her negative behavior towards me for months. Anyhow, thankfully I left the corp world six years ago. Sure I don't have great benefits or great pay anymore, but all that BS stress and crap is not worth any amount of money. It's no wonder so many marriages fall apart because guess what if you are unhappy at work many times that spills out into your home life. My hat's off to everyone who works full time, has a family and keeps it all together. I'm the first to admit I could never pull it off. I am happily married, but we are both older and free of kids at home.

That book title is stellar. Women don't have more bad bosses than men France. Men I know just suck it up and don't talk about it, they take it in, swallow it, and let it fester you might say.

I've been a boss, and I remembered what ineffective management was, and did the opposite. I wish this wasn't the case, but I've never had a female boss I could work with effectively. At least with my history of male bosses that sucked, not one of them was a brain ninja who played games. Their jerk-ness was just out there. Whereas the women I've worked for hid it better. They came off to their bosses like they were all business and balls, but when dealing with their direct reports, it was all about mixed signals, mind games and emotion. I don't want to be friends with my bosses, and if I didn't pretend I was interested in their personal lives, I wasn't a "team player." I'd rather work for a ballbuster than a game player, because it's my job, not a sorority rush.

My current male boss is mentally ill and he self medicates. But at least I know where he's coming from. I don't have to wonder if he's going to like me from one day to the next, because it has nothing to do with my job performance, and we're in agreement on that. I'd rather be respected than liked anyway.

Most of the time, take it as "constructive critisium", that is what helps alot of people. Well, that is what one of my ex-empolyer used to say to me. When he had to correct me on something.

There is a new, touching and heartwarming book called "DALTON SHORES." It tells of a young girl in the 1940's, raising 3 children as a single mom. Her low-paying waitress job makes it hard for her to afford Christmas for her three little ones and nearly impossible to find a new dad and husband. I recommend it as a Christmas gift.

I noticed that all the responses of abusive bosses are from women. Is it because we tend to put up with a helluva lot more bad blood than men do, or do we think we deserve bad treatment & lower pay??..Seems these nasty,demeaning bosses are women too. Women have more emotional & hormonal problems inside & seem to use them against other women too often..& they get away with it & continue their rampages because companies let them do it--Nobody wants to deal with BIT----Do bit--- rule the workplace now??..The bad gal gets to lead, while the worker-bee bends over for a huge kick everyday??...Wish I had a man boss!!!

What if the bad boss isn't my boss but is a fellow department head. And he's not bad like a jerk, but he's too nice to his underlings and lets them do whatever they want (including turning in shoddy work which means my department ends up spending extra time correcting their mistakes and we've ended up taking over some of the responsibilites that they are too incompetant to handle). For some reason this guy will not take a word of advise from any of his peers about cracking down (and in one case his underling should just be let go) and the board who oversees us all will not crack down on him because he's such a nice guy? What do I do?

What do you do if your bad boss is the sole owner of your corporation? He is not directly bad to me, just how he treats his employees as a whole and the destructable way he runs the company has ne on pins and needles everyday. He changes our pay date every week so we never know for sure when we are getting paid. He is badgering and manipulative to people he deals with in business relations. He has even had illegal dealings with more than one bank and none of them have turned him in! I have started to look for a new job, but it has not brought anything yet. I am physicaly getting sick and dont even want to go in anymore, I hope that something comes along soon!

My boss comes in on Mondays cranky because she drinks her weekend away. I'm always, always wrong, even about things and people she knows nothing about. Lately I've noticed that because we do not share the same ethnic background, I am excluded from work related issues. The departmental assistant, who shares the same background as my boss, is privvy to these things, which, considering she spends most of her time on the phone to her kids, is quite amusing. Anyone who doesn't share my boss' ethnic background is classed as "an idiot". I would complain to HR, but, she shares my boss' background and would side with my boss. Looking for another job.

another hockey fan: you are right once again. A good employee is good no matter the type of boss they work for. They may not enjoy the situation but will still give their best effort. It is a matter of their own personal work ethic.

Unfortunately and I will venture to say that a large percentage of the workforce today have very poor work ethic as I said earlier. The something for nothing mentality has taken over in our country and we will never get it back.

It is apparent all around where I live in Florida. It is actually appalling to see people who come into a job interview wearing shorts and flip flops and then say you suck because you didn't hire them. Are they serious?

Anyway, even the bosses have bosses too so if anyone is having trouble with their boss, they should always try to talk to them about it first. If that doesn't work start going up the ladder.