If you don’t get on with your boss, your daily working life can be an absolute nightmare. Your work can be affected, your private life can suffer and each day can become unbearable. Some people will never get on with their bosses, there may be a personality clash, they may have different working ideals, and they may want different things for the company. But you have to get on in your working environment and learn how to handle your boss, for he/she is often the person who can make or break you.

Getting your boss on your side
Remember your boss is human. They have working pressures that they have to put up with from their superiors, they need to be able to trust you to know that they can depend on you and know that if they ask you to do something it will be done well and efficiently. One of the key ways in which to get your boss on your side is to get him/her to trust you. Trust is key to a good working relationship, if they can rely on you to do a good job then you are laughing.

Richard Peters was a sales executive for a well-known telecommunications company. On a daily basis he had to meet sales targets and ensure all sales leads were covered. His job was demanding and highly pressurised and his boss was continually hounding him to meet the targets over and above expectations. One week his boss had to go away for an overseas meeting and he was left in charge of the fort and a small sales team. Richard took control immediately and realised he had been given the chance to prove himself. It had been a tough time in the sales department recently and part of the reason his boss had to go abroad to the head office in New York was to try and see how they could resolve the sales problem. Richard explained: ‘it was a worrying time, the stress in the office was immense, morale was low and it seemed we were continually banging our heads against brick walls. Yet I knew we had a good product and there really was no good reason why we could not sell it. I knew that some of the sales team had found our boss very difficult to work for. His stress had made them jittery and they had become nervous and found it increasingly difficult to be confident in their work. I decided to address this from the outset and encourage confidence and set up an incentive project. My father had a chalet in the Seychelles and I told the team that whoever sold the most that week would get a week in the chalet, all expenses paid. I decided to take a chance and pay for the flight myself to whoever won. That week was incredible, not only did we meet sales targets over and above expectations, but we also sold so much that we resolved the sales problems over the previous four months. The team was so encouraged that they went from strength to strength. For the next few weeks after that their sales continued to grow and with that so did their spirits. Richard’s boss was absolutely delighted, it actually came out that his boss’s job had been on the line and he could not find a way to sort out the sales problem. Richard was promoted instantly and for his loyalty and commitment to the company was rewarded with a hefty salary and bonus. His boss thanked him profusely and they have been solid working colleagues ever since.

Approaching Your Boss with a tough question
Working for somebody else needn’t be stressful if you learn how he or she works, what he or she likes and dislikes, and how to approach him or her at the right time. It can almost be a game and knowing when to ask a difficult or awkward question is crucial to getting what you want. Don’t ask them the pressing question when they are stressed or in the middle of something important. Often a Friday afternoon is a good time when they are winding down after a week of work and have a little more time to give. When you have a request always ensure that before you ask, you have a valid reason why you should be given it. When you approach you boss make sure that you don’t have any ‘I deserve this’ attitude and go in politely and positively.

Jenny Lee worked as a personal assistant to the Managing Director of a pharmaceutical company for four years. She enjoyed her job and liked working for her boss even though he could be temperamental at times. She practically ran the office and organised his personal and business commitments. After four years she thought she would be eligible for a pay rise and decided to approach her boss with the request. It was a Monday morning and she decided she would approach him at the beginning of the week. That morning her boss had a crucial financial meeting with the accounts department. The meeting did not go well and the outcome was that the company would have to make some cutbacks. Although Jenny had been in the meeting taking the minutes she still decided to approach her boss thinking that her request was still justified. He boss’s response was more than negative and he nearly threw her out of the room for as he put it being: ‘insensitive to the companies needs.’ Jenny was mortified she felt betrayed all the hard work over the past four years had been in vain. She knew of others with less commitment in the company who had had a pay rise and she was treated like this! However, once she had calmed down, she realised she had asked at completely the inappropriate time. She also knew her boss could be reasonable and decided to approach him at a later date. Two weeks later, Jenny drafted a letter to her boss highlighting how happy she was to have worked for the company and for him and why she still would like to explore the possibility of a pay rise. She approached her boss at a quiet time in the office, when she knew he was relaxed and they discussed her proposal. Eventually they came to an agreement and Jenny was given a 10% pay rise, even in the company crisis, her boss knew of her value and realised she was a loyal and productive employee.

Being Respectful
I can recall a boss I once worked for whom I really liked as a person but found her to be a poor leader. I once worked for an American conference producing company in Singapore. My boss was only a few years older than me and she had recently been moved to her new General Managing position. Whilst there she asked me to organise an event of which I knew would loose money for the company. We had a heated debate as to why the event would or would not work, but eventually I had to organise the event. The event made an incredible loss and I felt dismayed that I had put my time and effort into a negative conference. When we analysed the reasons why it did not work, without pointing a finger or issuing any blame I advised how I had explained that I thought it would not work, but we could learn by our mistakes and move on in a positive direction. My boss would’ve got into serious trouble with her superiors had they known that she had pushed and pushed the event, but I did not want to cause trouble I wanted us both to learn from the experience. From then on she always listened and talked through each event with everybody. Always be respectful to your boss whether you think they are right or wrong. Don’t be afraid to get your point of view across, argue your side if you have to but be aware that they have worked hard to get where they are and they too make mistakes!