Empowering Employees: Leading Your Boss

Empowered employees lead outside the organization lines by owning their jobs.  They do not just do what needs to be done but they think about how they could work smarter.  When it comes to solving problems, they do their homework and make recommendations that are backed by implementations plans. 

Some bosses might push back from empowering their employees. Some fear their authority will be undermined. Others are so insecure that leadership from below is a threat that must be stamped out at all cost.

These obstacles shouldn’t prevent you from trying to lead your boss, when appropriate. Observe the following guidelines:

•  Stick with the facts. Build your arguments with evidence. Make sure your research is on point.
• Ask others to challenge your premise. Before presenting your ideas to your boss, find people who can play devil’s advocate and explore your assumptions.
• Don’t confuse causation with correlation. Just because there’s a link between two issues doesn’t mean one provoked the other.

Dealing with a Jerk Boss

In some cases, all of the best data in the world won’t convince your boss that you’re right. If he’s a jerk, he’s probably insecure. He acts tough because he’s afraid of losing his job and control over others.

Jerk bosses cannot be reasoned with, so don’t even try. You can roll over, fight back or leave. Choose wisely.

Bounce Back

Ultimately, what really matters is how we recover when things don’t go our way. Resilience gives you the strength you need when faced with rejection.

Review:

•          What happened?
•          What could I have done better?
•          What did I learn?

The resilience to bounce back from a raw deal distinguishes those who succeed from those who become stuck, bitter and angry. Remain focused on goals and engaged in the process of fulfilling them.

Whatever success you are trying to achieve, attitude will be at the focal point of it.  Whatever challenge you encounter along the way, attitude will help you emerge from it with the proper frame of mind. Focus energy on creating a positive attitude about change. Understanding that your life is created by your thoughts means that you can change the world through your thoughts. When you understand that every challenge is an opportunity, it encourages you to grow and prosper.