NFR: How to be less annoying

[Berserker]

I have a feeling I annoy my boss at work. Any hints and tips on how I can avoid doing this. I think she may find me a bit of a smart arse

[HatterDon]

this is a skill I've never possessed. Sorry  :Get Coat gif:

[H4usuallysitting]

put her stapler in some jelly

[Lighthouse]

Well I think you need to get things out into the open. Find her soft spot and then bury her in it.

[K33NY]

digg up some bad stuff on your boss, get the proof of it then blackmail her to like you :P

[jms]

I'm guessing she doesn't support the whites ?  049:gif

[Admin]

Office politics, never been a fan unfortunately. I go to work, do my job, come home. Every day, I see people bitching, backstabbing and generally trying to bum-lick their way to better opportunities, only to fall flat on their faces, or at best, annoy the powers to be!!

I tend to go about my work in a quiet manor. My boss knows my capabilities, she knows I'm intelligent, and most of all, she knows I deliver results at the end of each month. Rather than trying to talk a good job (which most in my office do) I just get on with it without causing extra stress. By doing this, I get a lot of flexibility, whereas the others don't.

I you're annoying you boss, I can only assume you're doing this by disturbing her constantly during the day, talking etc? Otherwise what is her beef? If you're good at your job, intelligent etc, then just let your hands do the work, not your mouth (now that sounds a bit wrong).

I've come to learn that not everyone likes everyone in the office environment, although they generally tolerate each other because that's how work is.    

[Deanothefulhamfan]

I agree with Admin, (first for everything I guess ;) ) sometimes it is best just to keep your head down, and produce the work you are capable of.

If you are good at your job, and in line for her role she is maybe just a little paranoid.... Just keep up the good work, and her boss will see how valuable you are to the company.

[jags24]

Don't complain about anything, and don't quote Friedrich Nietzsche.

[RaySmith]

People in power can often feel insecure and paranoid, and threatened by people below, especially if they appear to know more than them.

You say she may think you're a 'smart arse' - so don't give her reason to think this - accept what she says, and don't question it, even if she is clearly wrong, but carry out instructions, and do your job as she thinks it should be done, even though you know your way is better.

After all this your boss may still dislike you- or are you a bit paranoid? - but if she does, sometimes you just have to accept these things-that she has the problem not you- especially in the workplace, where people are forced to be together though they don't choose to be.

[ChesterTheTabby]

Well I think you need to get things out into the open. Find her soft spot and then bury her in it.

Well I think you need to get things out into the open. Find her soft spot and then bury her in it.

At first glance... My mind wandered as to whay you were referring too.

[blingo]

buy her an apple

[Me-ate-Live, innit??]

Well I think you need to get things out into the open. Find her soft spot and then bury her in it.

Well I think you need to get things out into the open. Find her soft spot and then bury her in it.

At first glance... My mind wandered as to whay you were referring too.

Usually a bog  but quick sand  will do

Mrs B ...................Business  is Business ................... don't give a rats  or try REALLY hard to look like you do not give a rats

[jags24]

Honestly, I think that if you are having problems with being a smart arse then maybe you have some pent-up anger and resentment that is occasionally bubbling to the surface.  My suggestion is that on Sundays (assuming you work Mon-Fri), go get some exercise... a lot of it.  Take a 3-4 hour hike or something, do something to change your energy and see if that helps.  Usually, if you are feeling sore and fatigued, it is more relaxing and a lot of that angst will dissipate.  Good luck.

Jags

[Scrumpy]

I don't have a boss (but I do answer to my Clients, so it isn't all roses)!

My favourite employees are those that don't refer everything to me constantly. If they have a problem, they let me know and they also let me know what they propose to do about it. They don't burst into tears (ever!), rarely have 'women's problems' and they pretend that their good ideas were mine, and their bad ideas were their own. They don't constantly ask for pay rises, but look suitably surprised when they get one. They take all the overtime offered, but don't expect it or whine when it isn't. They're never off sick and they arrive and leave slightly earlier and later than the need to.

Not much then  fp.gif !   

I'm sure Mrs B does most of these. I suspect the Boss is the problem, not Mrs B.

[Apprentice to the Maestro]

I have a feeling I annoy my boss at work. Any hints and tips on how I can avoid doing this. I think she may find me a bit of a smart arse

This is difficult to believe because on FoF where, as a messageboard, it would tend to exagerate a person's aggression and smart arse tendencies, your name would be possibly the first to spring to mind as a poster who comes across as calm and not patronising of other's opinions.

[Me-ate-Live, innit??]

I'm sure Mrs B does most of these. I suspect the Boss is the problem, not Mrs B.

Well, we know that !!!!  IT'S how to deal with YOU, Scrumpy old chap,  that's needed

[Burt]

Surprisingly for such a large organisation (5,500 employees) where I work now has a lot less politics than other organisations I have worked for, even those where there were "only" a couple of hundred people.

One of our key principles is the concept of "foreground conversations". So if you have something on your mind, you are encouraged to air your thoughts in an open and constructive manner. So if I was having a problem with my boss, it would be perfectly acceptable for me to say that I needed a foreground conversation and we have a chat about that problem.

Taking a step back, bosses come and go, and there are good ones and bad ones. You can actually learn from both types. I learnt a lot from the worst boss I ever had, in terms of being able to cope with stress and how to manage around him and work through others instead.

However, people do tend to leave because of their bosses, so being able to manage them is important... So you need to have:

1. Clarity on their expectations of you. An up-to-date job description, and some objectives, always help.

2. A regular "cadence" of interaction with them. I have weekly team meetings, and 121s with my direct reports, for example. If you don't have this, then ask for it...

3. Confidence that if there is an issue, then you can say "I think not everything is rosy, can we talk about that". Be sure not to make it personal - so try to avoid phrases like "your management skills suck", and instead make constructive suggestions around how things can improve.