by Liz Ryan
Republished from Forbes, January 6, 2018
At any job, your boss is the most important person in your working life.
You have to trust and respect your boss, or you’re skating on very thin ice!
Fear is a powerful motivator, at work at everywhere else.
If your boss is the fearful type, they will throw you under the bus in one second if they feel it’s necessary. They will throw you to the wolves to avoid having to admit they made a mistake, for instance.
A boss who is already comfortable in their own skin will stand up for their employees. A fearful boss won’t stand up for anybody — not even themselves.
Your manager has a lot of influence over your pay level, your work schedule, the projects you get to work on, your career advancement and your general well-being on the job. If your manager is not in your corner, you’re going to have a very tough time growing professionally in the job, much less advancing.
That’s why you have to know whether your manager is in your corner or not, and whether he or she is a solid citizen or a fearful weenie who will stab you in the back in a heartbeat.
Luckily managers are not hard to figure out. You only have to pay attention to the things they say, especially when they’re talking casually and not really thinking about it.
If your manager talks to you about other employees behind their backs, you can be sure they’re talking about you to other employees, too.
Here are five things fearful managers say. If your manager says these five things you had better start thinking about whether the job is still the best place for you, or not.
1. I don’t make the rules — I just enforce them.
A manager who says “I don’t make the rules” declares their fear to the world.
A manager is not supposed to simply enforce rules. That doesn’t require any judgment or managerial discretion. Managers are supposed to run a department and lead a team, and that includes standing up for their team members when it’s appropriate.
If your boss is the type who says (or implies) “I don’t make the rules — don’t come to me looking for support, because I’m not going to spend my political capital on anybody but myself!” you had better get your resume up to date without delay.
2. In the business world, it’s every man for himself!
Many working people believe it’s a dog-eat-dog world, and that you have to put yourself ahead of anyone else to succeed. That’s a sad way to live your life, but if your manager has that viewpoint you know they are too fearful to stand up for you, their principles or anything else.
They will say and do whatever they feel they have to, and that could easily include throwing you off a cliff.
3. I’m not paid to have an opinion, and neither are you.
A fearful manager will say “I’m not paid to have an opinion, and neither are you” when they want their team members to stop voicing their opinions because somebody higher up the food chain might not like those opinions.
How can you work for somebody like that? You would end up hating yourself, if not making yourself sick. Better to start looking around for a manager who respects themselves — and you!
4. Rules are rules — I don’t make exceptions.
Context is everything in the working world and in life, so if your manager says “Rules are rules — I don’t make exceptions” you know they like certainty (which they view as safety) more than they like to use their brain, heart and instinct.
Your manager is afraid to make their own decisions. Making decisions is scary!
Making decisions is every manager’s principal responsibility, but a fearful weenie can’t see that.
You don’t have to rush to escape from a situation where your manager is a fearful ninny, but you do have to start thinking about your exit plan.
5. Keep your problems to yourself — I don’t want to hear about them.
If your manager says “I don’t want to hear your problems — just do your job!” don’t be upset with them. Your boss might be the world’s worst manager, but if they are it’s not their fault. Your boss didn’t promote him- or herself to a management role, after all!
At least now you know what you’re dealing with. A manager who doesn’t want to hear from his or her employees is not somebody who can mentor you. You deserve to work among smart and switched-on people. Now is a great time to go out and find them!