Once we start to live our values, anything that looks out of alignment will rise up. Often, because we put ourselves last, this will mean something at work raises its head, usually in the form of feeling overwhelmed, overworked, confused, or abused. Aside from your relationship with yourself (how’s that going?), your most important colleague is your direct supervisor, your boss, your manager. Having a good relationship with the person you report to should take a lot of your effort. If you are lucky enough to have an experienced people leader as your boss, then you will feel their support, have regular 1:1 meetings, and understand what is expected of you in your job. But most of us don’t have experienced people leaders, because our bosses didn’t have experienced people leaders, and in a world devoid of good role models, no one really knows how to lead a team.
The role of your supervisor
It’s easy to put all the blame on your boss – they are never available, they don’t seem to care about you, they don’t appreciate how much is on your plate, they give conflicting messages on what needs to be done, they hang you out to dry when a mistake is made. A poor people leader does indeed do all of these things, but rather than complaining, we do better when we recognize it’s because they don’t know better. Because they never had a boss that did it right, they cannot give you what they never had. So the crux of “managing up” is helping your boss be a better boss. And that starts with conversations. Rather than talking about your boss, you have to talk with your boss.
At most workplaces, you are reviewed based on “meeting expectations”. This means your boss’s expectations, and it’s difficult to meet them if the boss hasn’t articulated them. This is one reason why a written job description is so crucial. It’s the starting point to knowing what is expected of you. As we discussed last time, if you don’t have one, it’s time to create one, working with your boss to ensure this crucial item is current and accurate. You were hired off a job description so that might be a place to start. If you’ve moved around in a company and have no written job description (so common in nonprofits), then you’ll want to work with your boss to write one. Ask HR for a prototype, and then start listing the things that fall under your area of responsibility. There are many job descriptions available online for different functions. Once you’ve crafted a draft, it’s time to review it with your boss. Is this what they think you should be spending your time on? Are there other tasks they expect of you that aren’t included? And importantly, job descriptions should be line-listed in order of importance, so ask your boss to rank them in priority order. All of this will give you clarity of your boss’s expectations.
Once you and your boss feel you have the job description done, go to HR with it, and get their approval as well. Congratulations! Now you know what’s expected of you. On top of this, many companies have annual goals for their employees. Again, you should work with your boss on these, gaining approval. Make sure annual goals are SMART* goals; the easiest way I find to do this is to ask, “how will we know this was done”. Often times people write things like “streamline processes” or “create better relationships”. These can be vague, because again, how will you know if it’s done or not. Instead, write “draft process improvement plans for three processes” or “meet monthly with X team and partner on 2 projects”. Having measurable goals allows you to advocate for yourself all year long, and to stand strong in the knowledge that something was accomplished because you were clear on defining it from the start. There’s more on SMART goals at the end of this post.
Ask for what you need
Hopefully, with these two steps, you now know what’s expected of you. But what if it’s too much? Well, this is where you and your boss need to have good discussions. So many independent contributors, especially entry-level and/or one level up positions, are simply given too much work. Everything flows downhill and because everyone can delegate to you, but you have no one to delegate too, often the lowest paid team member does the most work. This is wrong. It will only be fixed by having regular and ongoing conversations with your boss, not to complain, but to ask for advice, and most of that advice will center around prioritization. This type of conversation might sound like this: “I’ll be honest, I’m struggling to get my work done within normal business hours. I’d like to ask for your help, either to help me prioritize so I know I am focusing on getting the most important things done first … or in speeding up my work so I can accomplish more within business hours.” If necessary, take your to-do list into your boss and ask them to go through it with you, specifically to identify items that are less important and can wait, or could be delegated (by your boss) to someone else.
To successfully discuss the quantity of work with your boss, you first need to tally all the work that needs to be done, especially compared to your job description. Keeping an up-to-date to-do list is vital because you will be re-prioritizing it every week. Be specific on your to-do list -- call this person, write this item – rather than vague or combining many tasks into one. In other words, don’t write “produce fundraising event”; instead, break down the parts: create invitation, make file with guest names/addresses, hire caterer, etc. When something new comes in, add it to your to-do list. Then, in your regular 1:1 with your boss, review your to-do list and get their feedback on where your time is best spent. Several things may happen:
Your boss may take something off your plate, either by giving it to someone else, or by telling you it’s not important.
Your boss may realize that there is no way everything can be done in a normal workweek, and then have to figure out what to do about that – meaning they will get better at prioritizing, or advocating for more help, or stopping the onslaught from other departments.
You and your boss may realize that some projects take you too long, and you need training or other support to work faster.
Your boss may not care. If this is the case, then you need to seriously consider if this is the right job/environment for you. Your boss’s role is to help you be successful; that’s every boss’s role for every team member. If they aren’t capable of doing that, and aren’t interested in learning how to do that, then they aren’t a good role model for you, and perhaps you might look for someone who is.
What’s that you say? Your boss never meets with you? Well, it’s fundamental to leadership that employees get regular touchbases with their boss. This is necessary to gain alignment, move projects forward, ensure good communication, identify problems and solutions. If your boss has no time for these regular touchbases, then they aren’t able to control their own schedule or don’t understand what leadership is all about. Make the case that you need this time: an hour every other week is the minimum, and it should be weekly if you have been in your job under six months.
Finding role models/your own board of directors
We all need positive role models. If your boss isn’t that person, then you are going to need to find them elsewhere. This could be a coach, a colleague, a former boss, an industry friend, someone from another department or someone you meet at a conference/event. It’s important that we all have at least two or three good role models to help guide our careers. Think of those leaders you admire, who seem to lead in ways that you consider supportive, successful, and positive. Ask them if they will mentor you from time to time. Ask them if you can discuss work items confidentially, and that you are looking for guidance. Most good leaders are honored to serve as mentors, and happy to help out when someone needs guidance. It’s wonderful to have your own “board of directors”, a group of mentors who can help you know how to handle a difficult problem or make a challenging decision. Your friends, whether at work or in your personal life, may not be experienced enough to serve in this role. Look for those who lead a team in some capacity. This board will help you forge a better relationship with your boss, which truly is the key to your success at this job. If your boss isn’t able/willing to work with you to create that positive relationship, then this board will help you know when to leave and help you find the next job.
* SMART stands for Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant and Time-Bound. So a SMART goal might read like this: Increase number of positive press articles in the LA Times by 10%, over baseline of 39 articles, by the end of March. Let’s take each one:
Is it specific? Can you tell what’s being identified as a goal? In the case below, it’s positive press articles in the LA Times
Is it measurable? How will we know it’s completed? A 10% increase would mean +4 more articles than the year before. Very measurable.
Is it achievable? Can it actually get done or is it a pipe dream? 10% is an achievable number given the baseline. It’s not 50% which would be difficult without adding staff. In particular with this one, make sure it’s achievable by YOU, meaning if you have to partner with others to ensure it’s completed, is it a priority for them?
Is it relevant? Does it relate to overall organizational goals? Does it matter? If the company is looking for positive press to increase sales or reputation as an organizational goal, then yes, this is relevant.
What is the timeframe in which it can be achieved? By the end of March.
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