HERE at Spinnaker we always ask job seekers what their motivation is for making a move and we usually find, as do countless surveys, that money is not the most important factor in deciding to change jobs. Therefore, it comes as no surprise to read in The Recruiter that working for a bad boss is a major motivator for changing jobs.
According to Robert Kelsey, who is the author of ‘What's Stopping You? Why Smart People Don't Always Reach Their Potential and How You Can', there are plenty of people out there that move to escape a bullying, manipulative or passive boss. Can there be people who manage to cop all three?
Kelsey cites a leadership consultant Shaun Belding as saying that learning to pacify the aggressive boss, without kow-towing to him or her is a useful people skill to learn. Although it's obviously important to make it clear that the boss's behaviour is unacceptable, confrontation in public is a definite no-no.
Passive bosses can also be managed and the idea is to provide support, while not seeking to undermine their authority. The manipulative type is less easy to handle, according to the article, because strong control over one's own emotions is necessary to combat the type of manipulation that might be put in play, and we all know how difficult that can be.
So, if you're desperate to escape one of these characters, give Spinnaker a call. Either way, if you're looking for practical advice on how to deal with a dodgy boss or to work out what's holding you back, Kelsey's book has got some fantastic reviews for being far more than just a run-of-the-mill self-help book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Whats-Stopping-You-People-Potential/dp/0857081721
