How to handle a mean boss?

[kat112073]

Hi,
My name is Kathy and I am a newbee at Fusion Cash. I am looking to make some extra income from home.
Anyway, all my life I have run across mean bosses. But this time, my boss is the meanest person I have ever met. Not only that, she is very rude too. Can anyone give me good advice on what to do and how to handle things without getting sick?

[king4cash]

What do you mean by your boss is mean...Do you mean with salary or just giving you a hard time, doing your job. Anyway I suggest that you just pray about the matter or find a new job.

[kat112073]

She is giving me a hard time and seems to favor others over me. I feel uncomfortable knowing what kind of boss she is and she is rude too. Thanks so much.

[lvstephanie]

If she is doing stuff in front of customers or things that aren't exactly ethical, you may want to talk with HR and / or her supervisor... If you do something like that, make sure you try to frame it like you are wanting to try establishing a better form of communication with your boss so that it seems like you are wanting a better working relationship rather than trying to throw your boss under the bus. Also, try to evaluate the situation as objectively as possible... Sometimes we get caught up in the event and take things person where the boss is giving some constructive criticism but may just have a mean way of giving it (eg Chef Ramsey cussing out people in Hell's Kitchen). Or if you really can't stand you boss's attitude and there is no recourse that you can use (eg a small "mom and pop" business where your boss is also the owner), then just find another place to work.

[candyterrius]

It’s not a surprise you mentioned your boss was a “female.” I’m sorry I cannot offer much advice. If your tolerance level is high, then stick with the job for as long as you can because you still need to pay the bills, if not, then quit. I had one of those bully boss from Hell which forced me to quit my job. She was extremely loud, critical and quick-tempered with everyone; that was her habit as a boss. I found out 2 more new employees have gone too after my departure. Turnover rate is always high. Not many employees are able to stay very long because she always give people a very hard time.

[kapeh12]

You may not like what I'm about to say, but the problem may not be your boss, but you.  As you indicated in your second post, she "seems" to favor other people, and you perceive her behavior as "rude".  She may not be either in reality - you are simply perceiving her behavior and interpreting this as such.

I recalled working someplace when I was new and was warned about how horrible a couple of the female managers/analysts were in an area I was schedule to work in - and when I got there, I found out the rumors were untrue.  The reality in my situation was that both women were strong, opinionated and smart - neither appreciated people wasting their time, and they were very focused on getting their jobs done with an extremely high standard.  If they were men, people would have considered their behavior "normal", but because they were women, this behavior was perceived as "mean".

All I did was treated both with respect, was honest and direct with them.  I took their behavior toward me as them being straight-up honest and direct, no hidden agendas - and used their feedback to learn the system as quickly as I could, and improve my performance.  We are now the best of work friends - and have accomplished much together.  Basically through my own hard work, I earned their respect.

One thing to keep in mind also, your boss is not your "friend".  Some may become your friends after a while, but in general, their job is to ensure the people they are responsible for managing are doing their work toward the common goal of the company.  You may not always agree on their methods, but observe if their motivation appears to be attempting to fulfill this duty - if so, try to learn not to take their behavior personally - just accept it as their "style" of managing.  If they ask for feedback, ask if you can be honest and provide almost a scientific analysis of how their managing style is being perceived (don't tell them they are "rude", instead, be more specific in citing an incident where you felt they were rude and explain what about the encounter made you perceive it as "rude" - was it their voice, speech patterns, body language, etc...).


Since it sounds like you are new, observe the people she seems to be "nicer" to - is it simply she appears to be less direct with them, are they high performance workers?  If so, try to learn from them how to become as good at the job as they are - by doing that, you may earn your boss' respect and she may not be as "rude" to you.

As one mentioned above, observe her behavior as objectively as possible - try not to tie any outlying meaning to her interactions with you outside of believing she's trying to help you learn your job and be your best.  When you start catching on, see if her behavior seems less "rude".


Sometimes by changing how you react to people, you no longer see them as "mean" or "rude", and you find it easier to get your job done.  When you thing someone is "mean" or "rude", human nature tends to react negatively back which makes the situation worse.  If you choose to interpret their behavior as simply being no-nonsense and direct, you will change your behavior and reaction to work harder and in many cases end up improving the situation by earning their respect.


Good luck!

[furby33716]

I have no idea but it seems like I have been cursed like you, I never have really enjoyed my bosses.  I am going to drive a cab  with little supervision maybe I will like.