The bad boss

April is a bitch! (I heard that from at least 3 people today, not including the voice in my head. The voice in my head agreed but worked hard not to let me say it out loud). Really though, she is a bitch, I am not even sure how to put it nicely. Today was absolute non-sense; I think every day just tops the last since the Monday explosion. She put a paper on my desk for me to redo (31 pages), on Sunday with an hour to do it, typical. I am not supposed to write or read which she has made clear but just edit, not this time. My perimeters are always changing, and she is a bitch so I never even want to reach them, nor will I ever be able to. To my point, does the Boss make the employee?

I am not a bad employee, I have many recommendations and from many people: Supervisors, co-workers, owners, managers, and whatever else I worked with. 

Boss's expectations vary for employees, but do they realize they directly affect how their employees perform?

Good Boss: The bar manager that kept us entertained, bounced, did whatever we couldn't and bar-backed if needed. He set a great example of what he wanted from us. Good Work: I wanted to come to work, I wanted to impress him, I wanted to have customers tell him what a great job I was doing because I appreciated what he was doing so much!

Bad Boss: The manager that threw me under the bus, constantly. Bad Work: I was never trained, so I didn't try to act like I was. She was always throwing me under the bus, so I stopped doing anything without direction because otherwise I got yelled at. Then I got yelled at for only taking direction.

Good Boss: The retail giant that cracked jokes, and set goals with small bribes (I mean pizza and cup cakes) I was working retail, which is not super fun and very draining. This guy was straight and working in a woman's clothing store. He would let us have fashion shows when we were slow, and really got us to like our jobs; he inspired creative thinking when approaching clients. Good Work: Our team met our sales goal every month and really liked each other, there was really no drama.

Bad Boss: The office owner who set no perimeters, goals and never gave raises or bonuses. Bad Work: The turnaround for the office was under 3 years, which means they lose a lot of money on training and never get consistent work. No perimeters means no goals can be met which sets everyone up to fail. No incentives, bonuses or raises means I was looking for a new job ASAP.

Good Boss: The office manager that was a shoulder to cry on and a voice for the employees. She gave treats for getting your time in early and always had a creative solution. Good Work: This woman made every day fun. I wanted to do more for the company because she made it feel like a home. She gave us little gifts constantly to let us know we were appreciated! It was the best boss I have ever had!

Now I obviously have a crap boss now, obviously I wouldn’t be spending my work time blogging :).
 
Noticing a trend? If you are a boss and you think your employees care because you treat them badly, they don’t they are just looking for somewhere else to work.

If you have been a good boss thank your employees and if you are a good employee thank your boss. Work is a team effort no matter where you are!