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All those who have worked for any reasonable length of time can tell you that there are days
when they feel like the weight of the world has just been placed on their shoulders. While it
shouldn’t happen, we all have felt the pressure of unreasonable expectations at one point or another. Think about how it feels when you’re under the gun and you know you won’t be able to finish in time but you can’t admit it to your boss because your job is on the line. Now think about feeling like that every day you come to work. For the millions of employees who daily deal with an unreasonable boss: there is now help for you.
Opening Lines of Communication
If you’re consistently being given new and more difficult assignments, one technique that often
works is speaking with your boss one-on-one. Any discussions should take place in private and
should reflect your feelings, not ultimatums. Present your points in a positive manner, but
remember that positive results are not guaranteed. Bosses are people, too, and they don’t
always take to criticism well, no matter how constructive. Your case should include why you
feel overburdened and what you would like to see happen. Make sure to give examples, and point
out what you have been doing every day at work, so your boss doesn’t think you’re just a slacker.
Take it Higher
If your boss isn’t responsive to your pleas, and you think you have a good enough case, take the
issue to your boss’s boss. This should only be used, however, in situations that become extremely
unbearable. To avoid your boss telling his or her boss about you coming, let as little time as
possible lapse between talking to your boss and to your boss’s boss. In some cases, your company
may have a Human Resources representative act as a mediator. Beware, however, that you may be
caught on the short end if your boss’s boss agrees with your boss.
The bottom line is that you must determine whether the situation is fixable or whether it
would be best for you to look for a different job. In the situation explodes, the chances are
great that your boss will be considered more valuable to the company than you are, and you
may be let go or worse, fired. Either way, be prepared to do some job-hunting.
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