One of my favorite songs is a classic rock song by a band called The Who entitled “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”
The song was written by Pete Townshend of The Who and it has a highly recognizable keyboard/organ rhythm and sound to it.
The song ends with these iconic lyrics: “Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss.”
While the ending lyrics to this song are very catchy, in my experience in Corporate America, the reality is that every boss is different.
Throughout my career, I have had many, many bosses. In fact, I have had 3 different managers over the past 20 months.
During your career, you need to be highly adaptable as you will wind up reporting to and learning from different leaders.
When you find yourself reporting to a new boss, try not to get worried and stressed out.
Instead, embrace my set of guiding principles ⏬️ for engaging with a new boss:
🎸 Get Off to a Fast Start: Making positive first impressions with your boss is crucial. Be positive and highly enthusiastic!
🎸 Communications Clarity: Gain clarity with your boss on her/his preferred method and frequency in communicating with you.
🎸 No Surprises: Bosses don’t like to be blindsided so make sure that you keep your boss very well-informed of your work and key matters.
🎸 Don’t Complain: Most bosses don’t have high tolerance for constant workplace complainers.
🎸 Propose Solutions: When you bring an issue or problem to your boss’s attention, act as a problem solver and propose a thoughtful solution.
🎸 Respect Time: Your boss is very busy. Don’t waste her/his valuable time.
🎸 Ask for Feedback: Feedback is a “gift” and periodically seek feedback from your boss.
🎸 Earn Trust: It takes time to earn the trust and confidence of our bosses. Do your best in earning that trust and confidence every single day.
As one of my highly respected mentors told me a long time ago, one of our key roles in Corporate America is to make our bosses look great!
If you have a new boss, remember that she/he is different from the old boss so be ready to embrace change!
What else would you add to the list above?