Coping With A Bad Boss

Is your boss a yeller, a micromanager or clueless? Does he put insulting notes on memos that co-workers can see? Does he throw things?

Amy Cunningham's first boss at a Minneapolis public relations firm was a yeller and a micromanager, a tough challenge for a new employee just out of college. After a series of unpleasant incidents, the boss finally exploded when he found out Cunningham had put together a media kit without showing him the separate pieces before assembling it--a routine task she'd done many times before.

The boss stormed into her office, got in her face, yelled and cursed. "He tried to throw out any personal insult he could come up with," Cunningham says. "I've never been in another situation, business or social, that was that scary."

It all worked out. Cunningham approached another executive at the company and got reassigned. The boss left a few years later, and Cunningham stayed on--15 years, and counting.

Having a bad boss is more than an annoyance. It's the main reason people leave their jobs. Increasingly, that's a tough choice these days. A new survey from Working America, an AFL-CIO affiliate, says that more than 50 million workers feel some pressure to stay with a bad boss because of the current economic downturn.

"It's difficult to handle [uncomfortable] situations without taking some type of risk, and that's why a lot of people choose to ignore or live with it," says Manny Avramidis, senior vice president for global human resources at the American Management Association.

So if your boss is a jerk and you feel you have no choice but to stay, how do you cope? Here are some basic tips:

The best way to deal with a micromanager is to update him frequently. E-mail the boss a memo or checklist of what you're doing on a project so the boss is reassured, and check off your accomplishments as you go.

For instance, if the boss assigns you a report to write and then dictates what exactly you should have in it, tell him, "You've given me enough guidance. Let me take a shot at it and I'll come back after I have a rough draft. Can we talk about the rough draft when it's done?"

Dealing with an unpleasant boss can be uncomfortable, if you choose to address the situation by confronting him. Weigh the problem and how much bringing it up with him might affect your career. If your boss is a yeller and is creating a tough--or even hostile--working environment, say something like, "These aren't the conditions I work best under. Let's talk about a way to make them better." If that approach doesn't bring results, seek advice from Human Resources.

Sometimes a boss who's perceived as a dummy can actually be good for your career. Use cluelessness as an opportunity to gain more responsibility. Ask if you can take on more projects and even help manage the team.

"For people who like to take initiative, that can be a great thing," says Gini Graham Scott, author of A Survival Guide for Dealing with Bad Bosses. Meanwhile, others find that they're directionless without a boss's guidance. If that's the case, gently force the boss to critique your work and ask you questions.

Ideally, vet your boss before starting a new job. If you're in the final rounds of interviews with an employer, use networking to find someone on the inside. Ask about the person you're likely to work with. What's his skill set? Does he respect the views of his employees? Does he delegate or does he drive people crazy with questions?

Finally, ask the following to flush out any facts your source didn't spill earlier: What do you like--and not like--about working here?

If you don't like what you hear, don't take the job.

(http://in.news.yahoo.com/240/20080728/1302/tbs-5242272.html?printer=1)

How to Feel More Energetic

Fatigue is a common complaint regardless of age, but it becomes more prominent after the age of 40. Assuming you are in otherwise good health, here are some things that you can do to boost your energy level:

Get more sleep. Most middle-aged adults need at least 7 hours of sleep each night.

Exercise. Starting an exercise program can be overwhelming if you suffer from fatigue. Start modestly -- perhaps stretching exercise and walking. Remember the good, healthy feeling you experience after you complete your workout.

Drink more water. Most people don't drink enough water. Dehydration makes us sluggish. A quick rule of thumb to determine how many ounces of  water you require in a day is to take you body weight (in pounds) and divide by 2 and add 8 ounces for 30 minutes of aerobic activity you do.

Pare down your commitments. Doing less is not always easy, but overscheduling is a primary cause of fatigue. Look over the activities of your day or week and often you can find some that may not be necessary or enjoyable. We all have things we must do. Take a look at the non-essentials, perhaps some should move into the rest & pleasure part of your life. Take charge of your life.

Take a B-complex vitamin supplement. The B vitamins provide energy and help maintain healthy muscle and nerve cells. Aging and stress increase our need for these vitamins, while alcohol and caffeine deplete them in our bodies. Take a B supplement that contains at least 50 mg of B-1, B-3, B-5 and B-6, and 400 micrograms (mcg) each of B-12 and folic acid.

Have Fun. Laughter is essential to good health. But merriment is a foreign concept for some people. Finding delight in life is energizing. Find things that give you an emotional lift and enjoy them.

Try licorice. This herb improves immune health, so it's a great tonic for people with fatigue. Use the herb, not the candy. Take 1/2 teaspoon of tincture daily for up to 2 months. If you dislike the taste of licorice, try schisandra (same size dose). Note: Licorice is not safe for people with high blood pressure or liver or kidney disease. 

Lose weight. Even a small weight gain is enough to make some people tired. Image carrying a 10 pound weight with you all day long. You will have more energy if you drop unnecessary body weight.

Declutter. Living in a mess - and feeling guilty about it, is tiring. Clutter also distracts the mind, making it more difficult to concentrate. Get just one room, or one area, organized. You will get a boost.

Energy is a beautiful thing. A person with a lot of energy can accomplish twice what someone without much energy can and have more fun doing it. You get more life with more energy. And here’s a way to crank up your engine: Act more energetic. That sounds like shallow, positive-thinking hype, but it’s actually based on solid evidence: It works.

When you act more energetic, it stimulates your body. Lying down is relaxing. Moving around is more stimulating. Moving around quickly is even more stimulating. It gets the heart pumping. It puts the mind in gear.

Our biology has evolved to fit a different kind of world than the one in which we now find ourselves. There were plenty of times in our prehistory when food was scarce. People who wantonly used up energy would be the first to die, leaving no offspring. The bodies following the prime directive CONSERVE ENERGY passed their genes to us.

But times have changed. It’s no longer difficult to find food. If anything, food is difficult to avoid. Calories are everywhere, hugely and abundantly available. As a matter of fact, now a major concern for people in America is being overweight. Times have changed dramatically. There’s no longer any need to conserve energy, but your genes don’t know it. They’ve still got their orders, like a soldier in a jungle who was never told the war is over.

You can be more energetic, but you’ll have to override your feelings. And you can do this. You’ll have to essentially ignore the natural laziness we all share.

The way to override your body’s prime directive is to act energetic whether you feel like it or not.

The truth is, you are energetic when you act that way, regardless of how you feel. Listen to what I’m saying here. You want to be more energetic? By simply acting more energetic, you immediately become more energetic in reality, in the same way that when you act ethical, you are ethical, regardless of whether or not you were tempted to do the wrong thing.

You can become more energetic in ten seconds. Simply start acting more energetic.

You don’t have to feel energetic to be energetic. A nice bonus, however, is that often when you act energetic, it will rev you up and make you feel energetic too.

Experiments show that when people walk quickly, it speeds up their metabolism, making them feel more energetic, and this energetic feeling lasts for several hours after the activity. Acting energetic physically changes your body into a more energetic body.

So don’t wait until you feel energetic before you act. Act first. The feelings will follow.

 

(http://moodraiser.blogspot.com/2008/02/how-to-feel-more-energetic.html, http://www.usgyms.net/energy.htm)