LEADERSHIP | WORK

Before Complaining About Your Boss, Try This

Hint: maybe it’s time to put yourself in their shoes.

Photo: iStock

I recently came across this question on Quora:

I hate that my boss is paid five times more than me, and is not as hard-working or good-looking as me, how can this be possible in a fair world?

I was speechless, not for the comments or the discussion around that question, but for the question itself. While I can understand the frustration for being paid significantly less than your boss, I really don’t get the “not as good-looking as me” part. Wages are not supposed to be calculated depending on someone’s appearance, right?

Also, another part of this question I don’t quite agree with is this: “my boss is not as hard-working as me.” See, unless you hack into your boss’ computer and hide a micro camera in their office, there’s no way for you to know how productive your boss is.

Another interesting question that popped up later in my Quora feed is this:

Should I quit my job because I hate my boss?

That’s when I thought, “Why do so many people hate their bosses?”

It’s true, there are many managers out there who abuse their power and authority. I get it. However, it’s also true that there are many leaders out there who do their best every day. And many of these still struggle to get their direct reports’ approval. According to research, some of them even get bullied.

The reality is, the reason why so many people can’t stand their bosses is most of them have never been in their shoes. Being a people manager is a huge responsibility — that most people don’t want to take — and someone who has never had direct reports can’t even imagine what a manager’s working day looks like.

These are the complaints I heard the most:

• My boss is checking my metrics every week, he has nothing to do;
• My manager never replies immediately to my messages, he’s lazy;
• She canceled our one-to-one last minute, that’s unacceptable;
• He postponed our meeting twice, he just can’t do his job.