It's been my experience that many women hold on to bad relationships for far longer than they should--and holding on to a bad boss is no exception. Most of us know when to walk out on an abusive boss, but the trickiest ones I've found are the ones that SEEM like they're great, but they aren't. Some of the clues that it may be time for a breakup include:
- Your schedule is no longer your own. The subtle boss makes it sound like that extra assignment that requires you to work on a Saturday is your choice, but you both know that's not the case. Once in awhile may be OK, but if it's happening all the time, that may spell trouble.
- Your boss is always working on helping you "fix your weaknesses," rather than playing to your strengths. One of the best bosses I ever had was someone who knew everyone's strengths and assigned our work accordingly. I was the writer, someone else was the detail-person, and someone else was great with organizing and editing. Rather than trying to get me to be more detail-oriented or sending one of my co-workers to a writing seminar, our manager planned work to build on our strengths, making everyone much happier and getting a lot more work done in the process. If you work for someone who sees you as a bunch of weaknesses to be fixed, then it's time to start thinking about moving on.
- Your boss doesn't support your professional development. Good bosses know that the more you know, the better it is for them, so they not only support your plan to go back for a Master's, they're helping you schedule your work around it. Not-so-great bosses see professional development of any kind as a "waste of time," or they just can't seem to get around to signing the paperwork for that workshop you want to attend. Professional development is critical to your growth as a worker, so any boss who doesn't support that should get the heave-ho.
- Your assignments and projects keep you stagnant. To remain competitive--and to keep from going insane--you have to have opportunities to try on new projects and assignments. Bad bosses want you to stay in your little cube, doing your narrow little job. Good ones recognize that it's important for you to stretch your wings and fly--even if it means that you fly right into another job.
One of the reasons I always encourage women to periodically reassess their career situation is so they can see what's going on in their current jobs. These are some good questions to ask yourself, especially if you're feeling a little antsy at work lately. Maybe it's time to find someone else.
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