Peter Garber responds
Peter R. Garber has worked as an HR professional for over 25 years and is the author of many business books including: Winning the Rat Race at Work and 100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of your Boss. (Read the Office-Politics book review below)
Peter Garber responds:
Part II: Trouble brewing working with a colleague
One of my colleagues confided in me that they are having difficulty working with another colleague. How should I handle this situation? Author Peter Garber responds: "Sometimes, it is easier for someone else outside of the immediate situation to see what needs to be done to resolve interpersonal problems at work…"
Peter Garber responds: More office politics now than 20 yrs ago?
Do you feel there is more office politics now then there was 20 yrs ago? Author Peter Garber responds: " I would agree that there seems to be more office politics than in the past. My belief is that there is also more pressure to succeed than ever before in the workplace…"
My boss has employed her nephew’s girlfriend…
One colleague has attempted to be physical but i managed to move, i have been told that they will be calling the boss to tell her what trouble i have caused… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, " There appear to many interpersonal issues going on amongst your coworkers which are probably made worse by hiring friends of the boss’s relatives. I think you have more pressing and immediate issues other than being promoted that you need to address right now… "
Promoted but no bump in salary
I was told by the CEO that I will now be supporting him… To me, this is a promotion but no additional salary was brought up. Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, " Unfortunately sometimes those in positions to give raises forget just how important raises are to those being promoted…"
Taking the heat for slacker coworker
Because this person is the Team Leader’s friend, nothing was done about him and the blame for all of it was placed on my shoulders for “not managing him”. Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, " It appears that the Team Leader either doesn’t know what this individual is like or doesn’t want to accept the truth about him. If you continue to complain about this guy to the team leader it may be viewed as a negative about you. Try this approach instead… "
Mutiny in the office
It has become evident that my boss is not doing his job. He is having to let people go because of this. I feel that for the sake of the program, he should be the one to leave. He gets paid twice what any of the rest of us earn, and that money could go towards more valuable staff members… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, " Trying to get your boss fired is obviously a very serious matter. Reporting this type of problem to higher levels in your organization is something that should be given serious thought… "
Feeling manipulated
I explained to the office manager that I believed there to be a miscommunication about my position, and that I would like the opportunity to renegotiate. Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, " There obviously was a disconnect between what HR told you the job was supposed to be and what the Office Manager decided what the job was to be. "
Confused about my role. Am I paranoid?
I’m being told that I will head up a group that is getting no support and even being “cannibalized” by other departments who want to market to its clients… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, "Either one of two things is happening: Option 1- Someone (probably your boss) is reluctant (afraid?) to tell you that you are “out” as far is this new project is concerned; or Option 2- There really isn’t a plan or vision for how this work is to be done and by whom and that these decisions will be determined by who steps forward to do this work."
Charming Colleague Demands Praise
A new younger colleague joined our hardworking team… The problem? He seems to expect praise all the time… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, "It is always difficult to give negative feedback to someone whom you have no authority over. It’s called influencing without authority. Your situation has been made even more difficult by the fact that this colleague is not receptive to hearing any constructive feedback about his work."
New Boss Trying To Prove A Point
I’m frustrated that I was overlooked, particularly since everyone else has since been promoted and I’m still in the same role I was in when I started… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, "Your new boss is trying to prove to someone (probably his new boss) that the organization made the right choice in hiring him. He may even try to make this point by trying to show that you wouldn’t have done the right things if you had been given the job…"
Scapegoat In Quality Assurance
It is critical that this software release on time and with acceptable quality; more than a billion dollars worth of business uses this software… Bottom line, it is not going to be ready for the deadline… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, "It is a sad but true fact that Quality depts often get the blame for problems that really aren’t always their fault. I do believe that you are being set up as the goat."
Sticky Notes And Email Wars
Because of my lack of involvement in her game, she does not talk to me, which is peaceful, but now she sends sticky notes to tell me something or will stand in front of me and tell another admin to tell me… Peter Garber, Author of ‘100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss’ responds, "It sounds like the Executive Assistant is on a power trip and making everybody miserable in the process. It is a shame that this person has been allowed to get to this point… The good news is that you don’t to report to her."
OFFICE-POLITICS REVIEW OF PETER GARBER’S BOOK
100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss
And Strategies to Prevent you from Getting There!
Author: Peter R. Garber
Publisher: Multi-Media Publications Inc., 224 pages, $24.95 USD
100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of Your Boss by Peter R. Garber is an entertaining and humorous read designed to help you improve your relationship with your Boss. Garber, who is the author of over 40 books, draws on his 25-years experience as a Human Resources Professional, to give readers ‘tips on how to deal with difficult bosses’. He says, “The challenge is to find ways to deal with even the most difficult bosses you may have to work for during your career.”
Each of the 100 Ways illustrates a problem that you may encounter when dealing with your boss and then provides a strategy to solve it. Garber says, “Unfortunately, sometimes people’s relationships with their bosses at work can get so strained that they are treating each other as if they were the competition, or even the enemy.” His advice is designed to get employees thinking from the Boss’ point of view, to objectively observe their own behavior, and to drop any adversarial feelings.
It’s easy to see why any of the employee blunders below would get you on the wrong side of your Boss. I either laughed out loud or was horrified at each of them. I wonder how many of these Garber has encountered in his HR career? And whether they were the cause of any employee’s untimely demise. Read these to the crowd around the water-cooler and see how they react…
TWELVE WAYS TO GET ON THE WRONG SIDE OF YOUR BOSS
#6. Don’t keep confidential information confidential
#7. Let your Boss struggle to remember names
#10. Ask your Boss questions that can’t be answered
#12. Don’t Give your Boss a ‘Heads-Up’ about problems.
#19. Send your Boss an email about him or her by mistake
#30. Don’t sweat the details
#32. Hide your mistakes
#39. Maintain a poor filing system
#61. Give your cold to your Boss
#65. Correct your Boss in public
#91. Keep repeating the same mistakes
#96. Criticize your Boss behind his or her back
If you’ve finished laughing, I think you would have to agree on two things.
#1 The employee is skating on very thin ice.
#2. Garber has a flair for situational comedy.
But I struggle with that ‘difficult’ Boss part. I don’t agree that a Boss is being difficult if he wants ‘confidential information kept confidential’. That’s not being difficult. That’s being smart. As the old saying goes, ‘Loose lips sink ships’, and corporate espionage will never go out of fashion. I’d certainly be upset about an employee hiding a mistake, talking behind my back, repeating the same mistakes or deliberately giving me a cold. Is this my moment of truth? Am I a difficult Boss? Fortunately I fired all my employees so it can’t be true (just joking).
I think that employees will get a lot of good information out of this book. Ideally it will prompt some healthy self-examination. After all, we can all improve. And we all make mistakes. But Garber’s book details some of the funniest and dumbest career blunders ever.
100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of your Boss by Peter R. Garber is available through Amazon
Multi-Media Publications Inc., ISBN 1895186896, $24.95 US/$29.95 CDN, 224 pages, paperback.
