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TAKE
#1: I have gotten a lot
of letters like the ones above. I always wonder why these otherwise savvy job
seekers "didn’t have a clue" when they were interviewing for their
jobs?
As a job seeker you are a buyer
as well as a seller. It is your responsibility to look beyond the congenial smiles
of the interviewers and figure out what you'll really be dealing with if you take the
job. That means making mental notes about the work environment, the general
"vibe" of the place, the way people at the company communicate with you (and
with one another). Don't be wooed by a great looking office or promises of a
"great" work environment- believe what you observe!
To Steve: If "crisis
mode management" isn’t to your liking and it is as widespread in your office as
you say it is, why did you accept this position? Didn't you know you'd be asked to work
under the same conditions as everyone else? No that you're on the job, do damage control before you call it
quits. First, consider the positive aspects of your situation: your
nearly-absent boss apparently doesn’t mind if you take charge of your daily
activities and decisions. This would be considered as a wonderful opportunity by many
ambitious, self-starters. Play your cards right and you could have a fast trip up the
career ladder! You might honestly prefer a boss who is always available to you, but then
you might feel constrained by a "micro-management" style. It is very
possible that one of the reasons your boss selected you is that he knew you could jump
right in and handle things on your own, freeing him up to focus on other issues.
Bothering your boss and his colleagues with your worries and complaints won't get you the
results you want. In fact, it will just annoy the higher-ups and make them doubt that you
were the right choice for the job after all. You might also consider the
circumstances. Is this a really busy time for your boss and could that be the
reason's he's been unavailable? Has a major project just started? Did business pick
up suddenly? Maybe you are just asking for a lot of attention at a terribly busy
time. If the managers are too busy to talk to you, they are probably too busy to
talk to others on your level, too. Your co-workers who have been there longer may be
helpful in showing you the ropes. Approach them with confidence and don't whine or
complain. You might start by saying: " I really need this information but the boss
isn’t around to ask for it. Do know how how?...do you know where?...can you
tell me....?" You get the idea!
Steve, you also mentioned that you are upset by the
negative criticism" levied by the managers at each other. Ask yourself: "Is
it really as bad as I think it is?" First impressions can often be wrong, and you
haven't been there a very long time. In some offices, catty criticism is a strange sort of
witty banter and comraderie. As long as it isn’t directed towards you it
is really none of your business. You don’t have to like it — just ignore it and
stay out of the office politics as best you can.
If none of this helps you, I would suggest that you
start quietly but seriouslystart job hunting, but continue to give the job a chance
to work out while you look. Leaving now will only make you look like a quitter. If
you can work your way around your immediate concerns and keep an open mind, you might
actually begin to appreciate the job you have. If things don't get better at least
you’ll have logged a few more months on the job and will be working towards finding
another job you will like better than this one!
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TAKE #2: To Barbara &
C.J.: Perhaps neither of you would have accepted your jobs had you known
who was taking over, and the upheaval that would results right after you started
working. Maybe it's just the luck of the draw, but now you've got to deal with the situation or start job hunting
again!
Barbara: if you had asked for your
agreement in writing up front, at least you would have some control over your
job title, duties, and benefits. Now you have little-to-none, and all you can do is make a
request to the management to honor that verbal agreement you think you made.
You have to hope that will do so.
To C.J.: If you
have a written job description you are certainly within your rights to review it with your
new boss so that there is no misunderstanding of who is responsible for what, but your new
boss can and probably will change things to suit his talents and his taste. If you
can't be flexible, you may be in for a rough time of it.
Before either Barbara of C.J. throw in the
towel, they should consider how they might turn their respective job situation around.
It's never fun when your new boss’s has the personality of a fly, or his work
and communication style make you want to retch, but keep one thing in mind THEY
didn’t pick YOU either — their predecessors did! They are as
"stuck" with you as you are with them and it's in both your best interests to
work things out. Consider that an overly-authoritarian manner may be due to a lack of
confidence as this person is trying to establish himself in a new role and he knows you
are loyal to the former boss! You may improve your relationship and work
environment significantly if you starting sending the message that you are both on the
same side as you both work for the same company. Show that you are committed to
being on their team, working towards common goals. If your boss seems most comfortable
doing your old tasks, try to find something new or different that you could take
on. If you can put your personal feelings aside and do a great job, you may
find that the pressure eases and the new boss actually becomes very supportive of you and
your career. However, as I suggested to Steve, begin job hunting (quietly, please)
just in case things don’t improve. Doing this will ease some of the pressure
you feel. Make sure that you do a thorough and honest assessment of any
new offers before you accept them, and be sure to get those agreements IN WRITING! You
already know that you’ll be a lot better off if you do!
If any of these people need to leave
quickly, they need not be too concerned about how one quick departure will
look to future employers --their resumes will show employers that they are NOT
chronic job hoppers! They will simply explain that the job they thought they were
hired to do never materialized and they feel it is in their best efforts to find something
more in harmony with thier career goals. All of these potential job seekers can
always obtain personal references from their previous jobs -- also quite acceptable under
the circumstances.
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