How to deal with an annoying boss

Your personal life is non-existent because your boss holds long, never-ending, agenda-less, stressful meetings. Bottom line: giving grief is your boss' way of reinforcing authority. You constantly feel like a fresher who is being ragged by a retarded senior on the first day of college. Solution: Maintain an impeccable record of meeting your deadlines. At least from your end, do not leave any scope for your boss to pick on you. At least this would minimise the grief. If the problems continue, getting together with your peers and approaching someone (maybe a higher authority) is an option. But at the end, it's the boss who is at loss. The employee turnover rates will be consistently high because people do not leave companies, they leave their bosses.

Your boss is a classic example of Type-A personality, hyper and impatient, combined with an obsession for details. Reaching at 9.01 for a 9.00 AM meeting is considered blasphemy and asking for an occasional leave is out of question. The targets achieved are never 'good enough' and the amount of stress your boss takes is enough to keep the entire team gasping for breath. While a certain level of perfection is good, you feel your boss definitely needs to get a life...and let you have one as well. Solution: The best way to deal with such a boss is to demonstrate the same levels of output. Respect their stand and avoid challenging them. Such a boss has perhaps seen success via hard work and believes in being extremely meticulous. Showcase examples of good work by double checking all critical areas of delivery.

Your boss doesn't appreciate out-of-thebox thinking and any attempt at experimentation is nipped at the bud. He/she is forever skeptical and even an occasional lunch with colleagues is seen as plotting-against-boss hours. Your progress report is studied intricately and periodical presentations attribute the team's efforts squarely to your boss, making you feel frustrated and undervalued. Solution: This is the boss you need to be friendly with. Highlight your boss' work and contribution. Provide constant assurance that your assignment was a success courtesy his/her inputs," says Arora. When it comes to selling your ideas try and adopt 'What do you think?' as your guru mantra instead of just announcing your plans. The participatory approach won't make your boss feel threatened.

Your boss, supposedly meant to keep you on your toes, is a regular defaulter. He/she seldom attends meetings and is late for the few ones that he/she does. The rate at which deadlines are forgotten makes you suspicious whether your boss suffers from the Ghajini syndrome. His/her disinterest in work has a de-motivating effect on the entire team. Solution: Change your perspective and be happy to help. Use your abilities to complement your boss and make up for his/her weaknesses. Your boss might also have certain development areas that you can take advantage of. Moreover, if you feel the incompetence levels are unacceptable, chances are, his/her superiors will notice that before you. Build on your own abilities, make yourself visible to the higher authorities and who knows? You might just replace your boss!

Your boss comes irritatingly close for comfort. He/she has a smile permanently plastered on the face, greets everyone with a resounding 'Hi', pokes you on Facebook and pries into your personal space as well. While you appreciate the concern, you are in no mood to reciprocate. However, saying 'no' will invite unwanted wrath. Solution: Whenever your boss tries to engage in mindless conversation , answer in monosyllables and chances are, the interaction will be comparatively shorter. Be assertive in your conversation and use succinct words to convey your reservation. Whenever the topics are off track, politely redirect the conversation to work-related stuff. You needn't act asocial, but being a "yes man" won't help either. Also, ensure that you yourself don't talk about family matters because that would only encourage your boss further.