Posted by Steve Bruce, January 27, 2012

Job satisfaction begins and ends with the boss, says executive coach Dr. Karol Wasylyshyn, author of Behind the Executive Door: Unexpected Lessons for Managing Your Boss and Your Career. To make the boss/you relationship work, first determine whether you have a Remarkable, Toxic or Perilous boss.

Wasylyshyn. a licensed psychologist and executive advisor, is founder of the Leadership Development Forum, which provides practical guidance for improving your work experience.

I Have a Remarkable Boss

Remarkable bosses are well-attuned to the concerns and aspirations of others, blend both facts and people considerations in their decision-making, and have healthy egos focused on business success versus just getting their own selfish needs met, says Wasylyshyn.

To make the most of working for a high-achieving and inspirational Remarkable leader, follow these tips, she says:

• Build a reciprocal relationship. Replace “What’s in it for me?” with “What’s in it for us?”
• Accelerate results. Call out colleagues on the differences between being busy and getting results.
• Be an enterprise player. Get out of your silo, share your knowledge and work collaboratively among departments.

I Have a Perilous Boss

Perilous bosses, despite their intelligence, are chronically critical and dissatisfied, inconsistent in their management of others, and moody. To reinforce the best behaviors with this discontented type, says Wasylyshyn:

• Clothe the Emperor. Keep the boss tuned into employees’ real concerns including aberrations in his or her leadership style.
• Connect head and heart. Coach him or her away from overly content-based behavior and toward an integration of objective (data) and subjective (people) factors.
• Be a mirror for bold actions. Strive to be the person the boss can turn to as a litmus test or emergency brake before taking audacious action.

I Have a Toxic Boss

Toxic boss are tempestuous, have no concern about the impact of their behavior on others, and are totally ego centric. To minimize a toxic supervisor’s destructive effects, says Wasylyshyn:

• Plan an escape route. Sometimes the best way to soothe the insanity is to start figuring your way out.
• Believe in yourself. Stay steady in the belief that your talents, intelligence and accomplishments are yours regardless of how your boss may criticize or fail to recognize your work.
• Bond with your peers. Collaborate with coworkers to preemptively resolve issues that could stand in the way of your respective successes at work.

First question: what type is your boss? And, maybe a more important question, what type of boss are you? Share in the discussion on the HR Daily Advisor website here.