How to improve your relationship with your boss

Relationships are an important part of our lives. They require nurturing and now and then needs a new spark. Professional relationships are no different, especially with your boss. They take time to develop and can go amiss if not nurtured properly. This may affect your productivity at work if not your entire career.
In this month that’s all about the love, we focus on positive workplace relationships and offer a few guidelines to help soften your relationship with your boss if it’s between a rock and hard place!

Find a way to connect on a human level
Get to know them! Talk to them regularly and find out what their interests are. This is key to building a strong relationship as it is critical for your success. Bear in mind that like everyone else, they too have bad days - it could be family related or financial. Use that as an opportunity to get closer, ask about the weekend or how the kids are doing without getting too comfortable. This will give you insight into what kind of individual your boss is and enhance relations between the two of you.

Make their goals your priority
After all, this is a professional relationship! And your goal as an employee is to make your boss’ life easier. Find out what’s on their schedule and ask how can you lighten the load. Understand their overall objectives and align them with yours this ensures that your performance counts towards the success of the overall organization.
Bear in mind that making their goals your priority does not mean sucking up or being false. Keep it as simple as finding out what they are working on and being of assistance.

Understanding their communication style
Different people prefer different mediums of communication. Respect your boss’ preference. If he or she is an email person, adapt to that. If they prefer telephone calls and face-to-face meetings adjust accordingly. Take note if they are over elaborative or seldom get into detail. This includes their management style as well. Observe if they are authoritative, democratic, or affiliative. This will help with your behavior and knowing how to respond appropriately.

To help make it easier you can compile a list of what impresses your boss and what ticks them off, again this will help with how you should behave. For example, if your boss appreciates you handing an assignment in on time, they probably appreciate everything else being done on time.

Exceed expectations
It’s a good feeling when you can answer your boss’s questions on the spot, without shuffling through piles of paper or telling them that you’ll have to get back to them. But if you want to exceed expectations, pre-empt the question. Anticipate what they want you to stay on top of, and send them regular updates. By adopting a few simple habits you can show your boss that you are a consistent and dependable member of the team, and who doesn’t want someone like that by their side if the going gets tough?

It’s a two-way street and everyone has something to offer. The healthier the relationship the better satisfaction you will both get from work. Wherever you are on the corporate ladder, your boss is as important as you and it’s to your advantage to get along with them and vice versa.