One day my boss is singing me praises and the next I can't do a thing right. How can I approach this?

Question

She will ask "did you do this?" "Did you get this done." In reference to my daily activities. And then after about a week of this we have a "meeting" where she tells me everything I have done wrong in the last month and it's all stuff like "your desk is messy when you're working" and "you forgot checks in the printer at 2:15 on the 16th." And then the next day everything's cool and she's cracking jokes and telling me how great I am. I don't get it. Is it me or is she just moody? How can I approach it? Do I just ignore it?

I haven't made a mistake for like 5 months. That's why it's infuriating. Because SHE doesn't even know how to do my job so her telling me how to it is really frustrating.

Answer 1

In response to her questions.. be proactive. Let her know before she asks that you have completed tasks.. a "To-Do" list on your desk with check marks on items helps for when you are away from your desk. As for the things that you have done wrong, were they items of which you were already aware? Are you trying to get organized so you make fewer mistakes?...

Some bosses like their workers to have organized desks so that when visitors view the area it looks neat and presentable. Is your boss the owner? or is she being evaluated on YOUR mistakes and appearance?...

Check lists help keep you organized and help you to keep others informed too... do you use a computer at work? can you send an email when you complete a task? Keep your boss informed and she will worry less.. or more if you are getting too far behind...

If all else fails, write up a new resume (at home) and start looking for a new job.

Answer 2

I wouldn't ignore it. It sounds kind of schizoid and is probably making you crazy, but I think you have to address it if you like your job. Maybe she is uncomfortable and insecure being a boss. I would ask to meet with her and say, "You know, I really want to be a good employee and I have some good ideas that I'd like to run by you" (then you must actually have some good ideas to present about how your job could be improved). Then say "And I would really appreciate your feedback about how I'm doing in general and what specific things you would like me to work on." You could even ask questions like "Is it more important for me to get out the urgent work or to keep my desk in order?" And maybe you could even say--in a nice way--that you appreciate her feedback (OK, so you really don't) but that you would find it more helpful if she told you right at the time it was happening so you could rectify it right away (instead of waiting until a "meeting"). Your attitude during this whole thing needs to be humble, sincere, genuinely seeking a way to be a better employee. I think this will impress her and hopefully head off these petty little criticisms in the future.

Answer 3

This is a tough situation no question. I would suggest that you set up a meeting with her to clearly establish what your goals and responsibilities are to her and the Company and agree on the way in which you will be measured on your performance. For example if your job is to keep up the health of the website you could report on % of time the site is down in a month with a goal of 99% up time. If you are 99% or higher you both know you are doing a good job.

The reason I suggest setting this type of routine is that it takes away the guess work as to whether or not your boss is happy or not happy with your performance. So if you are meeting your goals and performance standards and she is still "moody" with you than you know it is a personality conflict and that makes your choices really easy. Either you put up with it or you leave, but you won't change her.

Hope that helps.

Answer 4

Wow, sounds familiar. I am glad those days are over for me, and I don't know why I put up with it for so many years. She is either taking her personal life out on you, or pressure from her superiors. In my case, my boss was not doing very much and was later fired for giving all of her responsibilities to her employees, and doing nothing at her desk. All you can do is look for another job, but if this is too good of a job, then you could try to talk to her about it. Most likely she will not listen, as people who are like this don't like to hear about their own problems. You could also go to her superiors, which is what happened at my old job after I left.

If you really like her and think she is open to it, talk to her and tell her that it makes it hard for you to do a good job when you are being treated like this.

Also, if she is talking to you about things you really made mistakes on, then acknowledge you made a mistake and let her know you are doing all you can to avoid further errors. For instance, if you forgot checks in the printer, make yourself a system to avoid forgetting important items. If she confronts you about it, be prepared to tell her that you realize you had made that error, and from now on you will not proceed to the next step without checking that nothing was forgotten.

A few tips, I hope they made sense. :)