Name the country. Name the time in history. For thousands of years, we humans have been complaining about our bosses, who are unfair to us.

The senior supervisor shouts, gives out contradictory messages, works on unrealistic timelines, demands impossible work hours, and – worst of all – never listens. Clearly, the environment becomes depressing, for yourself and your colleagues. With little avenue for redress and even less opportunities for alternative employment, you become stuck. Life sucks and it begins to impinge on how you feel outside work.

I have been put this question recently by a couple of clients. What can be done?

Each situation is different. That said, there are some ‘rules of thumb’ that can be applied.

First, usually you cannot change the supervisor. That is not in your control. And usually, they are acting out on you because of their own internal stresses. I recall one boss of mine in the public sector from years ago, who would bellow at his staff. Awful. Most of us believed (with no proof) that his wife was half his size and gave him a rough time at home.

Second, it is often the case that the supervisor has a boss, who is not interested in hearing about complaints. If the job is done (well, better than before, or just keeps it away form the next echelon), they do not care.  Neither is there likely to be a collective threat with other colleagues. So no hope on both of these fronts.

I propose a different route, where you focus on…………yourself.

What do I mean? There is an old motto from the cub scouts: “do your best“. Be professional. Ensure that whatever you prepare and carry out has been double checked. Think out of the box. Look good. Smile. Be proud of yourself.

All of these actions are in your control. All of these issues are the opposite of what the supervisor is trying to make you feel. And no matter how much they regale you with their fury, they cannot take away from any of these points.

And will they continue to belittle your work? Maybe, but then you will know it is simply a lie. You should be able to smile back and walk tall. The supervisor will be annoyed, but stumped. And you will have finally started to manage your own boss.