Signs You Can’t Trust Your Boss – as Quoted in Reader’s Digest & MSN!

Trust is a cornerstone of business relationships between customers and suppliers and between bosses and subordinates.  It’s even more complicated in day-to-day working relationships.  Between roles, responsibilities, work product, team dynamics, it can get confusing.  I like the age old rule of:

  • Fool me once, shame on you.
  • Fool me twice, shame on me. 

Here are two clear signs that the boss-subordinate relationship is broken:

  1. Sniping Publicly.

If your boss is sniping at you publicly or making an example of you in team meetings, this is a sure sign, something is up and you can’t trust in him or her right now.  If it’s because your boss is annoyed with you, doesn’t really matter what you did or didn’t do, he won’t be your best ally right now, so don’t trust him (or her). Although some of the remarks and comments may be issues you have discussed in your evaluations or one-on-one meetings, if it’s happening publicly, even under the breath, first priority is to stop trusting and figure out a plan of action to address the situation.

  1. Explanations are not Forthcoming. 

Of course, your boss does not report to you and as such doesn’t need to check in and tell you what they are doing.  However, as your superior in the organization, the boss is responsible for keeping you informed about policy, programs, changes in plans overall company strategy.  If your boss stops telling you the why, behind assignments, plans, meetings and other office issues, it’s a clear signal, that may have nothing to do with you, although now has everything to do with you.  Your manager’s key job is to provide staff the tools, resources and direction to staff so that they can perform their job.  If your` boss stops providing these things.  Stop trusting.  

Read the full article with my quotes (slides 6 and 7) in Readers Digest- 9 Clear Signs You Can’t Trust Your Boss.

Have you ever been in a situation where you aren’t sure who to trust in the workplace?

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