Many a time you walk the thin line and do create a bridge between the Boss and subordinate. To do this you need to balance things delicately.
“There’s a sweet spot for assertiveness. If you’re below the range, you’re not going to get your way. If you’re above it, you’re not getting along with others,”
– Daniel Ames, professor of management at Columbia Business School
Managerial mettle is tested many times in your career. At times you cannot sell your idea or suggestion to your boss. At times you also face problems in delegating orders from the top to your subordinates.
Do you end up being in a catch 22 situation under ambiguous instructions from higher ups? An adage tells it is impossible to make everyone happy. Thus managers face tough time many times.
Lord Buddha has a remedy for this:
“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection”
In simple words, you need not compromise your rights, thoughts, and feelings, in order to go higher up the ladder or save face.
If managers lack self-esteem they cannot be happy with themselves. Neither they would be happy with others. In moments of stress either a person becomes passive-aggressive or passive with their Bosses. And many times in such situations they become aggressive with their subordinates.
This is not a solution because you cannot always justify means by ends. The bigger managerial effectiveness depends not on what he/she does but “how” he/she enables it.
Down you know how to balance between the boss and the subordinates effectively? There is only one solution that is to be Assertive. Assertive communication creates an image of your persona which draws respect not only from your subordinates, but you Bosses will happily lend you an ear.
Being assertive with the boss?
How to be assertive with your boss? It starts right from when you meet him/her physically or talk via phone. No verbal cues here matter the most.
In person when you meet your Boss, greet him/her with a smile. In phone wish your boss with happy, enthusiastic and energetic greetings at the very onset.
Use their name and make eye contact. In the phone, while talking, just look up and raise your chin. If you call or attend the call and look down the floor while talking, your voice automatically becomes submissive.
Take time before you answer the questions. But be positive in your body language.
Rest you should follow the assertiveness tips while talking to anyone. If you search on the web, you would have lots of articles for help.
Being assertive with the subordinate?
“The right amount of assertiveness, respect for others, and intelligence is what makes a great leader,”
– Lauren Zander, co-founder and chairman of the Handel Group
Though service should come before self, but former President of India, A. P.J. Abdul Kalam has advised that love for the job is a greater priority than love for Company. Steve Jobs also made a quote in the same vein. According to him loving your job is the most important thing in life. Until and unless you get ultimate job satisfaction, you should not stay in any such company.
Zander warned in an article that being overly assertive is often interpreted as self-promotional or arrogant among subordinates. “The costs of being overly assertive are not immediately apparent to us. If you yell at a subordinate, she may do what you asked but she may also go home and update her resume,” says Ames.
In order to be an effective manager, draw a line around yourself. You need not have to demand respect for you personally, either in a pub or shop floor because respect is earned. But make sure they do have respect for the authority of the position you hold. This is done by setting examples straight and leading by example.
“| Minimalist| Strategizer| Explorer| Enjoys Silence| – That’s what I am & What I do |” – That’s how Shouvik defines himself. An avid photographer, a Raghu Rai enthusiast, who also eats, sleeps and dreams the Vision of Steve Jobs, Shouvik has given birth to The HR Monks in a vision to change lives.
Greatly influenced by the passion of service of Mother Teresa and Karmayoga of Swami Vivekananda, he dreams of building an organization of the HR family, who will not only serve the nation by creating India a happy work-home but also creating a monks team who takes work as worship.
In his personal life, he is touched by Dr. Wayne Dyer who believes in a shift.