Do You Like Your Boss?

The first quarter of the fiscal year is over and that means it’s time to fill out our quarterly employee evaluations. As every fiscal quarter comes to an end the hungry sharks, aka bankers in business suits, become a little more aggressive as everyone struggles to boost their sales before the end of the quarter.

Our branch manager is a woman, I know that as a woman I should be more supportive of women in upper management positions, but unfortunately I am not.  It is absolutely a personal opinion that women are more emotional than men, and in my personal experience I work better with men than I do with women.  I have been working since I was 15 years old (my first job was at Mc Donald’s) and now I am 31 years old.  Please trust me when I say that I have had my share of crazy female bosses in the past 16 years from over energetic young and inexperienced bosses, to seasoned managers who don’t care about day to day operations because they are just counting the days until their retirement.

Take a moment and think about your favourite boss.  Was he or she a man or a woman? I don’t feel that women are successful managers because they usually feel that they have something to prove and therefore they like to show off their authority, this can be very dangerous for employees. I don’t particularly like working for women, but I definitely fake it…especially when it’s time for my quarterly evaluations because my money is in left in the hands of my boss.

This week I will complete my quarterly employee review and 50% of my quarterly performance review is evaluated at my boss’s discretion; this is why it is important to have a good relationship with our boss.

10 Tips on how to have a good relationship with your boss:

1. Smile. No matter what your boss says or does, just smile. An expression is worth a thousand words.
2. Keep Personal Opinion to Yourself.  They may ask but they don’t really want it.  They just want us to reaffirm their opinions.
3. Stay Away From Office Gossip.  Being known as the office gossip can really hurt your image and your career.
4. Be an Active Team Player.  Participate in round tables and workshops but don’t be too overbearing or bossy, we should always keep in mind that we aren’t the boss.
5. Have Great Team Spirit. We should try our best to get along with our coworkers; it makes our day and our workload easier.
6. Be on Time. The key to success is to blend in with the team but stand out in our individual work. We shouldn’t be the last employee to arrive in the morning or the first one to leave in the evening.
7. Work Hard.  We are paid to work so we shouldn’t complain about being busy. No one likes a negative person.
8. Remember That Our Boss is Always Watching.  Don’t try and get away with things that you know aren’t right because either they already know or someone will tell them.
9. Take The Time to Build a Relationship.  Make sure to talk with your boss one on one at least once a day.  Give them an update on your work progress or ask them a question (even if you know the answer) this keeps the communication door open.
10. Volunteer Your Time.  If your office is organizing an outing or a fundraising event offer to help.  Our extracurricular activities can help our professional careers.  It shows dedication, organization, and time management.

Photo by GavinSt.Ours

Kristina Tahnyak

Tahnya is a Certified Financial Planner and former Investment Advisor turned marketing and communications professional She holds a degree from Concordia University, is debt free and currently works in the field of digital marketing.