
“工作空間”是一個(gè)兩周一次的問(wèn)答專(zhuān)欄,,討論工作中讓你夜不能寐的困難挑戰(zhàn)。為了行文清楚,,讀者的問(wèn)題略作精簡(jiǎn),。
問(wèn):我的上司是一個(gè)愛(ài)推卸責(zé)任的人,他花在逃避責(zé)任上的時(shí)間,,比幫助團(tuán)隊(duì)解決問(wèn)題,、高質(zhì)量地完成工作的時(shí)間還多。
從某些角度看,,我并不在意——一個(gè)單位即便沒(méi)有領(lǐng)導(dǎo),,也好過(guò)有一個(gè)胡亂作為的壞領(lǐng)導(dǎo),。但我經(jīng)常覺(jué)得,我要想做好我的工作,,還得先替他做好工作,。我一直把它當(dāng)成一個(gè)成長(zhǎng)的機(jī)會(huì),也在盡我所能地培養(yǎng)他的權(quán)責(zé)范圍之外的能力,,目前的效果還算不錯(cuò),。
問(wèn)題是,我應(yīng)該繼續(xù)在這種“領(lǐng)導(dǎo)缺位”的狀態(tài)里走多遠(yuǎn),?有沒(méi)有什么界限是我不應(yīng)該跨過(guò)的,?我怎樣知道自己是否應(yīng)該,或者什么時(shí)候向上頭提交一份完全誠(chéng)實(shí)的績(jī)效評(píng)估報(bào)告呢,?
——本
答:親愛(ài)的本:
你“竭盡所能”的工作態(tài)度,,和對(duì)個(gè)人成長(zhǎng)的重視,說(shuō)明你很關(guān)心你的工作,,你是一個(gè)有上進(jìn)心的人,,你想成就一番事業(yè),而并非把它看成一個(gè)渾水摸魚(yú)的機(jī)會(huì),。
很多處在你這個(gè)位置的人,,對(duì)當(dāng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)并不感興趣,因?yàn)樗麄兂烁珊米约旱墓ぷ?,還要承擔(dān)新的責(zé)任,,而且他們也不知道自己做得對(duì)不對(duì)。很多人在你這種情況下很難把工作干好,,因?yàn)樗麄儾恢李I(lǐng)導(dǎo)到底想要什么,,也很擔(dān)心自己會(huì)出錯(cuò)。
在你談到你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)“沒(méi)有幫助團(tuán)隊(duì)干好工作”的時(shí)候,,我注意到,,你不管是談到自己還是談到別人時(shí),思考的都是大家需要什么樣的支持,。有這樣的認(rèn)知,,說(shuō)明了你的高情商。并不是所有的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)都有你這樣的認(rèn)識(shí),,很多領(lǐng)導(dǎo)都沒(méi)有在日常工作中花時(shí)間注意下屬的表現(xiàn),。這是他們?cè)陬I(lǐng)導(dǎo)藝術(shù)上的失敗。好的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者知道這一點(diǎn):管理不光只是管,,也意味著要對(duì)團(tuán)隊(duì)成員提供支持,。貌似你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)沒(méi)有給你們提供任何支持,甚至是在回避責(zé)任,,這是一個(gè)很常見(jiàn)的問(wèn)題,。我也認(rèn)為,,一個(gè)當(dāng)甩手掌柜的領(lǐng)導(dǎo),其實(shí)比一個(gè)事無(wú)巨細(xì)事必躬親的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)要好,,但它畢竟會(huì)讓你額外承擔(dān)很多責(zé)任,。
不過(guò),你問(wèn)的這些問(wèn)題有一個(gè)共同的主題,,我擔(dān)心這會(huì)讓你走上一條怨恨和人際關(guān)系問(wèn)題的死胡同,。你認(rèn)為你的問(wèn)題是你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)回避責(zé)任造成的,你說(shuō)你替他承擔(dān)了多少工作,,你在想自己是不是應(yīng)該曝光他,,以及在什么時(shí)候通過(guò)什么手段曝光他等等。我能明白你為什么有這種想法——檢查指導(dǎo)你的工作,、激勵(lì)團(tuán)隊(duì),,這些原本都是他的工作。不管出于什么原因,,他都沒(méi)有給你和你的同事必需的支持。
對(duì)于這種在其位不謀其政的管理者,,金·斯科特曾在《坦誠(chéng)相待:在不喪失人性的前提下做最牛的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)》中指出過(guò)他們的一些常見(jiàn)特點(diǎn):“總的來(lái)說(shuō),,在其位不謀其政的管理者不會(huì)對(duì)下屬進(jìn)行指導(dǎo),不愿意接受反饋,,不向員工提供幫助,,也不好奇員工在做什么。更糟糕的是,,他們甚至根本不想知道,。一個(gè)在其位不謀其政的管理者不想知道任何細(xì)節(jié),因此他們也認(rèn)識(shí)不到各種問(wèn)題,?!?/p>
對(duì)于如何應(yīng)對(duì)這種類(lèi)型的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者,斯科特給出了三點(diǎn)意見(jiàn):
1,、要求定期的一對(duì)一檢查
2,、抽時(shí)間討論你的工作目標(biāo)
3、向領(lǐng)導(dǎo)提供反饋
我認(rèn)為這三點(diǎn)對(duì)那種在其位不謀其政的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)很有效,,你可以試一試,。
我也有過(guò)與這種“甩手掌柜”型的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)打交道的經(jīng)歷,我發(fā)現(xiàn),,如果他們不想關(guān)注你,,或者如果你沒(méi)有足夠的心胸,那么,,如果你想改變他們的行為,,結(jié)果可能會(huì)很讓人失望,。說(shuō)得現(xiàn)實(shí)一點(diǎn),你可以向人家提出反饋,,但人家不見(jiàn)得會(huì)接受,。你可以告訴人家你的目標(biāo),但人家不見(jiàn)得會(huì)幫你實(shí)現(xiàn)它(尤其是如果他們不惜一切代價(jià)向后縮的話),。斯科特的建議是值得一試的——有可能你已經(jīng)試過(guò)了,。但我建議你,你也應(yīng)該想想你自己在這種情形下需要的是什么,。
如果你只能從這篇文章中學(xué)到一條建議,,我希望是這一條——那就是在何時(shí)和如何為你自己和你的團(tuán)隊(duì)爭(zhēng)取利益的問(wèn)題上,要做出更明智的決定,。有一位回避責(zé)任的上司,,最大的好處就是你可以按你的想法干工作。你應(yīng)該充分利用這種施展空間,,不要再想什么“領(lǐng)導(dǎo)缺位”或者“憑什么我要替他干工作”這種問(wèn)題,。如果你以這種方式處理問(wèn)題,那么工作中還會(huì)有很多情況會(huì)消耗你的精力,。
對(duì)你來(lái)說(shuō),,專(zhuān)注于你能完成的事,展示你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力,,最終一定是更有幫助的,。如果你把這件事看成一次展示你的能力——包括團(tuán)隊(duì)和項(xiàng)目領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力的機(jī)會(huì),那么無(wú)論是對(duì)你當(dāng)前的工作,,還是對(duì)你的整個(gè)職業(yè)生涯,,都是有好處的。
在任何工作中(不管是普通的全職員工,、承包商,、顧問(wèn)還是自己創(chuàng)業(yè)),你都需要記錄自己取得的成績(jī),。這既包括大的成就(比如一些值得在年終總結(jié)或者求職簡(jiǎn)歷里大書(shū)特書(shū)的成績(jī)),,也包括小的成績(jī)。你可以在谷歌文檔上建立一個(gè)專(zhuān)門(mén)的文件,,也可以記錄在你的個(gè)人電腦或是隨身的筆記本里,。工作成績(jī)要盡量能以數(shù)字說(shuō)明,特別是如果數(shù)字能顯示你的工作帶來(lái)的影響的話,。隨著時(shí)間的推移,,小的成績(jī)積少成多,你就會(huì)看到你的工作成績(jī)帶來(lái)的一些趨勢(shì)性的東西,尤其是如果你承擔(dān)的一些責(zé)任并不在你的職責(zé)范圍內(nèi)的話,。
記錄自己的成績(jī)也有助于你重新理順你的工作,,你也可以借此展示你的工作帶來(lái)的影響。而且它還能幫你記住很多案例,,所以你在與團(tuán)隊(duì)成員互動(dòng)時(shí),,也能更好地為自己發(fā)聲。所以下次,,當(dāng)有同事抱怨:“我的經(jīng)理從來(lái)不回答營(yíng)銷(xiāo)上的問(wèn)題,,所以我只能把它們當(dāng)成重點(diǎn)問(wèn)題來(lái)解決了?!蹦憧梢赃@樣回答:“我邀請(qǐng)了營(yíng)銷(xiāo)部門(mén)參加頭腦風(fēng)暴會(huì)議,,好讓他們?cè)琰c(diǎn)參與到對(duì)話中來(lái)。我注意到在那些早期規(guī)劃會(huì)議之后,,他們的廣告文案很快就得到了批準(zhǔn),。”
我是一個(gè)樂(lè)觀主義者,,但我不得不承認(rèn),,有時(shí)我也會(huì)犯錯(cuò)誤。雖然我希望你記錄的全都是勝利的消息,,但按照你的情況,,你也需要記錄一下你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)讓整個(gè)團(tuán)隊(duì)失望的時(shí)候。至于這種時(shí)候究竟是指哪些事,,由于你沒(méi)有給出太多信息,所以我只是泛泛地提出建議,。
你現(xiàn)在的處境比較棘手,,因?yàn)槟阋呀?jīng)開(kāi)始承擔(dān)你領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的一些職責(zé)了。如果這部分的工作出了什么問(wèn)題,,你肯定不想因此而被追責(zé),。所以你還需要展示的是,在重要問(wèn)題上,,你曾向他請(qǐng)示報(bào)告過(guò),。如果他選擇忽略你,或者想方設(shè)法回避這項(xiàng)工作,,你或許會(huì)有干脆踢開(kāi)他,,自己拿主意的沖動(dòng)。但你要策略性地考慮這樣做的時(shí)機(jī),,這樣你才能證明你已經(jīng)走完了請(qǐng)示流程,,是因?yàn)闆](méi)有在合理的時(shí)間內(nèi)聽(tīng)到他的意見(jiàn),才自己做了一個(gè)明智的決定。
以前,,我有時(shí)會(huì)在會(huì)議上記錄哪些事情做得很好,,哪些事情可以做得更好。在會(huì)議結(jié)束后,,花5到10分鐘記錄這些東西,,能幫你注意到一些趨勢(shì)性的東西(不管是好的還是壞的),同時(shí)也能讓你注意到有哪些事情一直沒(méi)有完成,??傊坝涃~”是一個(gè)很重要的習(xí)慣,。畢竟就算你真的想跳過(guò)上司和人力資源部門(mén)去“越級(jí)”反映問(wèn)題,,你也得有一些具體的事例和證據(jù)來(lái)支撐?!拔颐恐芏荚谥軙?huì)上提出支出的問(wèn)題,,現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)兩個(gè)月了,我的支出還沒(méi)有被批準(zhǔn),?!边@種話肯定比“他的文書(shū)工作不行”更有說(shuō)服力。
如果你的上司對(duì)你的要求沒(méi)有反應(yīng),,那你也要記錄下來(lái),。他取消會(huì)議也好,工作中不跟你說(shuō)話也好,,不主動(dòng)讓你了解政策的變化也好,,不傳遞關(guān)鍵信息也好,這些都是讓你沒(méi)法干好當(dāng)前工作的原因,。
你對(duì)“領(lǐng)導(dǎo)缺位”問(wèn)題介入得有多深,,應(yīng)該取決于你有多想自己當(dāng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)。如果你對(duì)管理團(tuán)隊(duì)和項(xiàng)目很有興趣,,就要證明你有這個(gè)能力,。如果你對(duì)自己現(xiàn)在的工作更有興趣,那么像這樣越俎代庖,,只會(huì)更加分散你的精力,,搞得你疲憊不堪。如果你之所以承擔(dān)了這么多職責(zé),,只是因?yàn)闆](méi)有別人頂上去,,那么你就要想想自己的回報(bào)與付出是否等價(jià),以及這些責(zé)任是不是你應(yīng)該承擔(dān)的了,。
祝好,。
珍(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:隋遠(yuǎn)洙
“工作空間”是一個(gè)兩周一次的問(wèn)答專(zhuān)欄,討論工作中讓你夜不能寐的困難挑戰(zhàn)。為了行文清楚,,讀者的問(wèn)題略作精簡(jiǎn),。
問(wèn):我的上司是一個(gè)愛(ài)推卸責(zé)任的人,他花在逃避責(zé)任上的時(shí)間,,比幫助團(tuán)隊(duì)解決問(wèn)題,、高質(zhì)量地完成工作的時(shí)間還多。
從某些角度看,,我并不在意——一個(gè)單位即便沒(méi)有領(lǐng)導(dǎo),,也好過(guò)有一個(gè)胡亂作為的壞領(lǐng)導(dǎo)。但我經(jīng)常覺(jué)得,,我要想做好我的工作,,還得先替他做好工作。我一直把它當(dāng)成一個(gè)成長(zhǎng)的機(jī)會(huì),,也在盡我所能地培養(yǎng)他的權(quán)責(zé)范圍之外的能力,,目前的效果還算不錯(cuò)。
問(wèn)題是,,我應(yīng)該繼續(xù)在這種“領(lǐng)導(dǎo)缺位”的狀態(tài)里走多遠(yuǎn),?有沒(méi)有什么界限是我不應(yīng)該跨過(guò)的?我怎樣知道自己是否應(yīng)該,,或者什么時(shí)候向上頭提交一份完全誠(chéng)實(shí)的績(jī)效評(píng)估報(bào)告呢,?
——本
答:親愛(ài)的本:
你“竭盡所能”的工作態(tài)度,和對(duì)個(gè)人成長(zhǎng)的重視,,說(shuō)明你很關(guān)心你的工作,,你是一個(gè)有上進(jìn)心的人,你想成就一番事業(yè),,而并非把它看成一個(gè)渾水摸魚(yú)的機(jī)會(huì),。
很多處在你這個(gè)位置的人,對(duì)當(dāng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)并不感興趣,,因?yàn)樗麄兂烁珊米约旱墓ぷ?,還要承擔(dān)新的責(zé)任,,而且他們也不知道自己做得對(duì)不對(duì),。很多人在你這種情況下很難把工作干好,因?yàn)樗麄儾恢李I(lǐng)導(dǎo)到底想要什么,,也很擔(dān)心自己會(huì)出錯(cuò),。
在你談到你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)“沒(méi)有幫助團(tuán)隊(duì)干好工作”的時(shí)候,我注意到,,你不管是談到自己還是談到別人時(shí),,思考的都是大家需要什么樣的支持。有這樣的認(rèn)知,說(shuō)明了你的高情商,。并不是所有的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)都有你這樣的認(rèn)識(shí),,很多領(lǐng)導(dǎo)都沒(méi)有在日常工作中花時(shí)間注意下屬的表現(xiàn)。這是他們?cè)陬I(lǐng)導(dǎo)藝術(shù)上的失敗,。好的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者知道這一點(diǎn):管理不光只是管,,也意味著要對(duì)團(tuán)隊(duì)成員提供支持。貌似你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)沒(méi)有給你們提供任何支持,,甚至是在回避責(zé)任,,這是一個(gè)很常見(jiàn)的問(wèn)題。我也認(rèn)為,,一個(gè)當(dāng)甩手掌柜的領(lǐng)導(dǎo),,其實(shí)比一個(gè)事無(wú)巨細(xì)事必躬親的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)要好,但它畢竟會(huì)讓你額外承擔(dān)很多責(zé)任,。
不過(guò),,你問(wèn)的這些問(wèn)題有一個(gè)共同的主題,我擔(dān)心這會(huì)讓你走上一條怨恨和人際關(guān)系問(wèn)題的死胡同,。你認(rèn)為你的問(wèn)題是你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)回避責(zé)任造成的,,你說(shuō)你替他承擔(dān)了多少工作,你在想自己是不是應(yīng)該曝光他,,以及在什么時(shí)候通過(guò)什么手段曝光他等等,。我能明白你為什么有這種想法——檢查指導(dǎo)你的工作、激勵(lì)團(tuán)隊(duì),,這些原本都是他的工作,。不管出于什么原因,他都沒(méi)有給你和你的同事必需的支持,。
對(duì)于這種在其位不謀其政的管理者,,金·斯科特曾在《坦誠(chéng)相待:在不喪失人性的前提下做最牛的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)》中指出過(guò)他們的一些常見(jiàn)特點(diǎn):“總的來(lái)說(shuō),在其位不謀其政的管理者不會(huì)對(duì)下屬進(jìn)行指導(dǎo),,不愿意接受反饋,,不向員工提供幫助,也不好奇員工在做什么,。更糟糕的是,,他們甚至根本不想知道。一個(gè)在其位不謀其政的管理者不想知道任何細(xì)節(jié),,因此他們也認(rèn)識(shí)不到各種問(wèn)題,。”
對(duì)于如何應(yīng)對(duì)這種類(lèi)型的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者,,斯科特給出了三點(diǎn)意見(jiàn):
1,、要求定期的一對(duì)一檢查
2,、抽時(shí)間討論你的工作目標(biāo)
3、向領(lǐng)導(dǎo)提供反饋
我認(rèn)為這三點(diǎn)對(duì)那種在其位不謀其政的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)很有效,,你可以試一試,。
我也有過(guò)與這種“甩手掌柜”型的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)打交道的經(jīng)歷,我發(fā)現(xiàn),,如果他們不想關(guān)注你,,或者如果你沒(méi)有足夠的心胸,那么,,如果你想改變他們的行為,,結(jié)果可能會(huì)很讓人失望。說(shuō)得現(xiàn)實(shí)一點(diǎn),,你可以向人家提出反饋,,但人家不見(jiàn)得會(huì)接受。你可以告訴人家你的目標(biāo),,但人家不見(jiàn)得會(huì)幫你實(shí)現(xiàn)它(尤其是如果他們不惜一切代價(jià)向后縮的話),。斯科特的建議是值得一試的——有可能你已經(jīng)試過(guò)了。但我建議你,,你也應(yīng)該想想你自己在這種情形下需要的是什么,。
如果你只能從這篇文章中學(xué)到一條建議,我希望是這一條——那就是在何時(shí)和如何為你自己和你的團(tuán)隊(duì)爭(zhēng)取利益的問(wèn)題上,,要做出更明智的決定,。有一位回避責(zé)任的上司,最大的好處就是你可以按你的想法干工作,。你應(yīng)該充分利用這種施展空間,,不要再想什么“領(lǐng)導(dǎo)缺位”或者“憑什么我要替他干工作”這種問(wèn)題。如果你以這種方式處理問(wèn)題,,那么工作中還會(huì)有很多情況會(huì)消耗你的精力,。
對(duì)你來(lái)說(shuō),專(zhuān)注于你能完成的事,,展示你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力,,最終一定是更有幫助的。如果你把這件事看成一次展示你的能力——包括團(tuán)隊(duì)和項(xiàng)目領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力的機(jī)會(huì),,那么無(wú)論是對(duì)你當(dāng)前的工作,,還是對(duì)你的整個(gè)職業(yè)生涯,都是有好處的,。
在任何工作中(不管是普通的全職員工,、承包商,、顧問(wèn)還是自己創(chuàng)業(yè)),,你都需要記錄自己取得的成績(jī),。這既包括大的成就(比如一些值得在年終總結(jié)或者求職簡(jiǎn)歷里大書(shū)特書(shū)的成績(jī)),也包括小的成績(jī),。你可以在谷歌文檔上建立一個(gè)專(zhuān)門(mén)的文件,,也可以記錄在你的個(gè)人電腦或是隨身的筆記本里。工作成績(jī)要盡量能以數(shù)字說(shuō)明,,特別是如果數(shù)字能顯示你的工作帶來(lái)的影響的話,。隨著時(shí)間的推移,小的成績(jī)積少成多,,你就會(huì)看到你的工作成績(jī)帶來(lái)的一些趨勢(shì)性的東西,,尤其是如果你承擔(dān)的一些責(zé)任并不在你的職責(zé)范圍內(nèi)的話。
記錄自己的成績(jī)也有助于你重新理順你的工作,,你也可以借此展示你的工作帶來(lái)的影響,。而且它還能幫你記住很多案例,所以你在與團(tuán)隊(duì)成員互動(dòng)時(shí),,也能更好地為自己發(fā)聲,。所以下次,當(dāng)有同事抱怨:“我的經(jīng)理從來(lái)不回答營(yíng)銷(xiāo)上的問(wèn)題,,所以我只能把它們當(dāng)成重點(diǎn)問(wèn)題來(lái)解決了,。”你可以這樣回答:“我邀請(qǐng)了營(yíng)銷(xiāo)部門(mén)參加頭腦風(fēng)暴會(huì)議,,好讓他們?cè)琰c(diǎn)參與到對(duì)話中來(lái),。我注意到在那些早期規(guī)劃會(huì)議之后,他們的廣告文案很快就得到了批準(zhǔn),?!?/p>
我是一個(gè)樂(lè)觀主義者,但我不得不承認(rèn),,有時(shí)我也會(huì)犯錯(cuò)誤,。雖然我希望你記錄的全都是勝利的消息,但按照你的情況,,你也需要記錄一下你的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)讓整個(gè)團(tuán)隊(duì)失望的時(shí)候,。至于這種時(shí)候究竟是指哪些事,由于你沒(méi)有給出太多信息,,所以我只是泛泛地提出建議,。
你現(xiàn)在的處境比較棘手,因?yàn)槟阋呀?jīng)開(kāi)始承擔(dān)你領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的一些職責(zé)了,。如果這部分的工作出了什么問(wèn)題,,你肯定不想因此而被追責(zé)。所以你還需要展示的是,,在重要問(wèn)題上,,你曾向他請(qǐng)示報(bào)告過(guò),。如果他選擇忽略你,或者想方設(shè)法回避這項(xiàng)工作,,你或許會(huì)有干脆踢開(kāi)他,,自己拿主意的沖動(dòng)。但你要策略性地考慮這樣做的時(shí)機(jī),,這樣你才能證明你已經(jīng)走完了請(qǐng)示流程,,是因?yàn)闆](méi)有在合理的時(shí)間內(nèi)聽(tīng)到他的意見(jiàn),才自己做了一個(gè)明智的決定,。
以前,,我有時(shí)會(huì)在會(huì)議上記錄哪些事情做得很好,哪些事情可以做得更好,。在會(huì)議結(jié)束后,,花5到10分鐘記錄這些東西,能幫你注意到一些趨勢(shì)性的東西(不管是好的還是壞的),,同時(shí)也能讓你注意到有哪些事情一直沒(méi)有完成,。總之,,“記賬”是一個(gè)很重要的習(xí)慣,。畢竟就算你真的想跳過(guò)上司和人力資源部門(mén)去“越級(jí)”反映問(wèn)題,你也得有一些具體的事例和證據(jù)來(lái)支撐,?!拔颐恐芏荚谥軙?huì)上提出支出的問(wèn)題,現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)兩個(gè)月了,,我的支出還沒(méi)有被批準(zhǔn),。”這種話肯定比“他的文書(shū)工作不行”更有說(shuō)服力,。
如果你的上司對(duì)你的要求沒(méi)有反應(yīng),,那你也要記錄下來(lái)。他取消會(huì)議也好,,工作中不跟你說(shuō)話也好,,不主動(dòng)讓你了解政策的變化也好,不傳遞關(guān)鍵信息也好,,這些都是讓你沒(méi)法干好當(dāng)前工作的原因,。
你對(duì)“領(lǐng)導(dǎo)缺位”問(wèn)題介入得有多深,應(yīng)該取決于你有多想自己當(dāng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo),。如果你對(duì)管理團(tuán)隊(duì)和項(xiàng)目很有興趣,,就要證明你有這個(gè)能力。如果你對(duì)自己現(xiàn)在的工作更有興趣,,那么像這樣越俎代庖,,只會(huì)更加分散你的精力,,搞得你疲憊不堪。如果你之所以承擔(dān)了這么多職責(zé),,只是因?yàn)闆](méi)有別人頂上去,那么你就要想想自己的回報(bào)與付出是否等價(jià),,以及這些責(zé)任是不是你應(yīng)該承擔(dān)的了,。
祝好。
珍(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:隋遠(yuǎn)洙
Work Space is a biweekly Q&A column tackling the work challenges that keep you up at night. The question has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
Q: My boss is totally checked out and spends more time and effort avoiding accountability than solving problems or helping his team deliver good work.
In some ways, I don’t mind—no boss is actually better than an actively bad boss, after all—but I often feel like I have to do his job in order to do my job. I’ve been treating it like an opportunity for growth and have been making every move I can to grow my own capabilities beyond his purview, with good results so far.
My question is, How far into this leadership vacuum should I venture? Are there some lines I shouldn’t cross? How will I know if or when it’s time to file a completely honest performance review?
—Ben
A: Dear Ben,
The fact that you are “making every move you can” and interested in growth tells me that you care about your job, you’re self-motivated, and you want to make things happen. Kudos to you for stepping up instead of taking this as an opportunity to slack off.
Many people in your position wouldn’t be interested in leading, let alone be worried they’re doing it right as they juggle new responsibilities on top of old ones. Many people have a hard time getting things done in your situation because they’re so frustrated by not knowing what their bosses want or worried they’ll get something wrong.
Whether you’re talking about other people or yourself when you mention that he’s not “helping the team deliver good work,” I can see that you’re thinking about what kind of support people need in order to do well. Having an awareness of this shows your emotional intelligence. Not all bosses connect in that way, and many don’t build time into their day to notice how the people they work with are doing. This is a failure of leadership. Good leaders know that managing people also means supporting people on their team. It sounds like your boss is unavailable or avoidant, an all too common problem. While I agree that a checked-out boss is better than a micromanager, a boss that’s totally absent puts a lot of responsibility on you.
However, the questions you asked have a common theme, which I fear may take you down a path of resentment, interpersonal drama, and dead ends. You’ve hinged your problem on his unhelpful approach, focusing on how much of his work to pick up and if/how/when you might expose him. I can see why—it’s literally his job to check in on what you’re doing and to motivate the team. For whatever reason, he’s not giving you and your colleagues the support you need.
Kim Scott offers a useful guide for identifying the traits of absentee managersin her book Radical Candor: Being A Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity. “In general, absentee managers don’t give guidance, aren’t open to receiving feedback, and don’t assist their employees,” she writes. “They also tend to lack curiosity about what their employees are doing. Even worse, they might not want to know at all. A true absentee manager doesn’t want any details, which allows them to remain unaware of problems.”
She offers three tactics for how to handle these types of supervisors:
Asking for regular one-on-one check-ins
Making time to discuss what you’re trying to accomplish
Giving feedback to your manager
I agree that all of these are great to try with a hands-off boss. Give them a shot.
I’ve also had experiences with a true absentee manager, and I found that if they don’t want to pay attention to you or don’t have the bandwidth, it can be frustrating to continue to focus on changing their behavior. Let’s be real: You can give feedback to someone, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to take it. You can tell someone your goals, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to help you work toward them (especially if they are trying to avoid getting involved at all costs). Scott’s tactics are worth trying—and maybe you already have!—but I also encourage you to also focus on what you need in this situation.
My please-if-you-do-one-thing-from-this-advice-column-do-this-one-thing is for you to make more conscious decisions about how and when to advocate for yourself and the team. The best thing about having an unresponsive boss: You have a huge opportunity to get things done on your terms. Make the most of the space you have. Stop thinking about this situation as a “l(fā)eadership vacuum” or like you “have to do his job.” There are so many situations that will suck your energy at work if you approach them this way.
Focusing on what you can get done and how you can show your leadership is ultimately going to be more useful for you. If you reframe this as an opportunity for you to show what you can do, and how you can lead people or projects, the results that you deliver are going to help you in this job and throughout your career.
Like any work you’re doing (and this applies to full-time employees, contractors, consultants, and entrepreneurs), you need to be keeping track of what you’ve been able to accomplish at work. This means both big accomplishments, which you should focus on in your annual review or when you interview for your next job, and smaller wins. Keep a running document, in Google Docs, on your personal computer, or in your go-to notebook. Include numbers where you can, especially when they show the impact of your work. Tracking those smaller wins over time will help you see big-picture trends that you’re good at and what you’ve been able to get done, especially if you’re starting to take on responsibilities that aren’t in your job description.
Tracking wins for yourself also helps you reframe what you’re doing so you can show the impact of your work. And it helps you keep examples top of mind so you can be a better advocate for yourself in interactions with your team members. For example, instead of responding to a colleague complaining about a situation with something like, “My manager never answers the questions that marketing has, so I’ve been dealing with them on top of my other job duties,” you can try an approach like, “I started inviting marketing into brainstorming meetings so they could be a part of the conversation earlier. I’ve noticed that the ad copy they’ve done after those early planning meetings has gotten approved more quickly.”
I’m an optimist, and I have to admit I can sometimes be loyal to a fault. While I want your wins to be the only thing you need to document, in your situation you also need to keep track of times when your boss is really letting the team down. You haven’t given a lot of information about what that means, so I’m going to offer general advice.
You’re in a tricky situation, since you’re starting to take on work that should fall under your boss. You don’t want to be held accountable for things that go wrong that are outside your pay grade. You also need to show that you have tried to engage him when it’s important. It may be tempting to cut him out of the loop if you feel he is going to ignore you or sidestep the work. Think strategically about times you need to make the effort, so you can demonstrate that you tried to go through the right process and then made an informed decision after you didn’t hear back within a reasonable time.
In the past, I’ve sometimes kept track of what went well and what could have gone better in meetings. Taking five to 10 minutes after a meeting to write this down helps you notice trends (both positive and negative) and times when you’ve consistently had to follow up on things that haven’t been delivered. It gives you documentation. If you’re in a situation where you need to escalate something to someone above your boss or to HR, you’ll have concrete examples and proof to back it up. “I’ve been checking in on my expenses being approved in my weekly meeting for two months, and I still haven’t gotten them approved” is a lot more powerful than “He’s bad at paperwork.”
If your boss is unresponsive, document that. Canceling meetings, not speaking to you at work, not proactively letting you know about important policy changes or passing on critical information are all things that stop you from being able to do your current job.
How far you “venture into this leadership gap” depends on how much you care about leading. If you’re interested in managing people or projects, showing that you can do that is important. If you’re more interested in focusing on work you’re doing now, stretching into someone else’s role is going to take you further away from the work that you care about and lead to you being overextended while you do two jobs. If you’re leaning into that role just because no one else is, think about how much you’re picking up and if it’s yours to carry.
Sending you good vibes,
Jen