How to Win the Admiration of Your Boss

Bosses. Love them or hate them, most of us have to work with one. And like it or not, this individual is often the single most important factor in advancing your career. So how you can you make sure that you win the admiration of your boss? Here are a few practical tips:

🤝 Get to know them

Take a little time to understand your boss as a person. You don’t need to be best friends (and they probably won’t want to be), but make an effort and ask how their weekend was, for example. Try to make the relationship a little more personal, and your boss will start to see you as an individual, not just another member of staff.

🤔 Understand how they work

Every individual works slightly differently, and bosses are no different. In that regard, try to recognize as early on as possible in your relationship with your boss how he or she likes to get the job done, and fit in with that as far as you possibly can, even if you understand that it is not the way that you would do things.

“In an ideal world, bosses and employees dovetail in their approach, but in the real world, staff must fit in with the way a boss likes to do things. Understand what they like, and what they don’t like, and act accordingly,” warns Barbara Whaley, an HR professional at LastMinuteWriting and Writinity.

📈 Understand their objectives

If you really want to get into your boss’ good books, then it is imperative that you see the bigger picture and understand what they are trying to achieve. You might want to ask your boss if he/she wouldn’t mind meeting with you to set your goals or to chat about the vision of the company for the coming quarter/year.

If you recognize the same objectives, and work towards the same end goal, then you will not fail to win the appreciation, trust and respect of your boss.

⚓ Be reliable

What bosses value perhaps more than any other commodity in their employees is reliability. Ask any boss what the number one priority is when it comes to hiring the perfect employee, and the answer will involve someone who comes in every day and does the job that they are asked to do with the minimum of fuss.

You don’t have to be your boss’ best friend, and it may be that you work slightly differently. Recognise that fact, and respect it, but never ever compromise on getting the job done when it needs to be done.

Do what you say and say what you do, be on time, and show commitment.

🚀 Show initiative, but don’t blindside them

Bosses appreciate employees who can stand on their own two feet, and are proactive in what they do. Within the scope that you are given in your role, always try to deliver a little more than you are asked, but never blindside your boss by doing something that they are not expecting.

“Keep communication alive at all times, and say what you are intending to do before you do it. Keep you boss in the loop at all times, because running away with your own initiative can be as equally as damaging as never using it at all,” advises Carrie Lou, a business writer at DraftBeyond and ResearchPapersUK.

🗓️ Hit your deadlines (or better)

A boss wants employees who deliver, so this one is obvious. If you can better, then do better. And this is vitally important: if you recognize that a deadline is not going to be met, for whatever reason, then openly communicate that fact at the earliest possible moment. It is not the failure to meet deadlines that really riles bosses, but the failure of staff to foresee that problem, and prepare them for it. This again, is being blindsided.

💭 Offer solutions to problems, not just the problems themselves

Sometimes you have to be the bearer of bad news. That’s just the way life, and business, works. But when you deliver that bad news, as you must, try to offer a solution with it. It may not always be the right solution, or the one that you ultimately run with, but your boss will always appreciate that you are looking for ways to solve the issue at hand.

Presenting yourself as a problem solver, not a doom-monger, is always the best foot forward.

Try to be the glass-half-full person, too, but recognize when it is not the time or the place for it.

About the author

Angela J. Bryant is an established writer and editor at GumEssays.com and LuckyAssignments.com. Social media, business and the job marker are her particular areas of expertise, and her sage advice has already helped countless people develop and further their careers.