Horrible Bosses: How to Avoid Being a Bad Boss

If you lead a team at work, or are in charge of one or more people, the relationship that you have with those that you manage is vital to your own success. You may hate the term ‘boss’ but if part of your job involves telling others what to do, that’s how your colleagues are likely to view you. So how can you ensure you are the kind of boss that people like and respect and not the type that gets labelled a ‘nightmare boss’?

Give Clear Instructions
Make sure people know what’s expected of them. Set realistic deadlines and let people know how you their work will be assessed. Working without clear instructions can make team-members feel stressed and under-valued.

Be Fair
If you manage more than one person, it’s important that you treat each member of your team equally. Avoid having favourites and make sure you share the workload when it comes to asking people to take on extra responsibilities.

Get to Know Your Team
If you only see your colleagues in a work-environment, it’s easy to forget that they have a life outside work too. Take the time to get to know people – simply sitting down for a coffee and a chat for 10 minutes each week can give you the opportunity to bond with your team.

Get Stuck In
If your team has to work late or do a particularly tiresome job from time-to-time, be willing to help out yourself. This shows that you don’t think of yourself as better than your team members just because you are in charge.

You’ll find more information about being a good manager at the Management Advisory Service website: www.mas.org.uk

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