How to Improve Your Relationship with Your Boss

By Devanshi Thakkar

Here are some easy peasy tips to improve your relationship with your Boss;

1.Synchronize Expectations and Priorities

One way to build a strong relationship with your boss is to ensure that both of you are on the same page.

It is essential to have clear discussions and clarify areas that you are unsure about. Learn what items are on your boss’s’ topmost agenda.

Discuss and share your goals and what significant items are on your plate so that your boss is aware.

2.Meet Deadlines and Commitments

Deadlines are a necessary part of work; they help in proper planning. Deadlines help in aiding the smooth flow of work and lead us to perform tasks faster.

Failure to meet deadlines, especially chronic failure, can lead to disastrous consequences.

Become known as an employee who regularly meets deadlines, and you will be in your boss’s’ good books.

Be a good time manager. Keep a running list of your essential tasks, projects, and deadlines. Look at the plan regularly to ensure that nothing slips through the cracks.

3.Have Regular Check-In Meetings

Having regular one-on-one check-in meetings with your boss is a good practice.

It creates an excellent opportunity to discuss with your boss what you are working on, progress and accomplishments, and any challenges that you are facing.

One-on-one meetings can be scheduled at various intervals, such as daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly. A comfortable gap is either once a week or once every two weeks.

4.Take Initiative

Having initiative, being resourceful, and going the extra mile are all positive ways of strengthening your day to day interaction with your boss and building your work credibility.

However, the first rule of taking the initiative is don’tdon’t neglect your primary responsibilities at the expense of doing extra work. Your job takes precedence at all times; do it, and do it very well.

5.Treat Your Boss With Respect

Speak respectfully to not only your boss but also your colleagues and other stakeholders.

Respect your boss’s time and avoid unnecessary interruptions.

A healthy dosage of respect at work fuels the interplay between your independence as a professional and cherishing your interdependence with your boss. You both need and rely on each other for success at work.

6.Make a Good Impression

Making a good impression is being genuine, assertive, and self-confident, remembering the other person’s name, and not interrupting when others are talking.

Project your voice well, listen twice as much as you talk, take the right notes, and demonstrate understanding or clarification by briefly paraphrasing what you heard.

7.Avoid Gossiping

Don’tDon’t gossip about your boss or other employees. Closely related to GossipingGossiping is negativity, avoid negativity, and steer clear from office drama.

Be loyal to your boss.

You can avoid getting caught up in gossip by not commenting, excusing yourself, changing the subject, staying busy, commenting only on the good in others, and avoiding gossipers whenever possible.

8.Share The Credit

Bosses need praise as well. Praise your boss; congratulate him or her when they accomplish something great.

Recognize your boss when they have assisted you in accomplishing a key activity.

Share credit with colleagues too. Remember to acknowledge and thank team members for their efforts in making a task, project, or event a success.

Praise others both privately and publicly.

9.Practice Common Courtesy

Good manners at the workplace can be exhibited through being kind, considerate, polite, and helpful.

Simply saying good morning to colleagues and your boss shows that you respect them and acknowledge their presence. It is one of the simplest gestures to do every day, and it gives an excellent start to the day.

Likewise, say goodbye, good evening, or good night to colleagues as you head out at the end of the day.

Ways of being considerate to others include:

• Not having loud personal conversations on your cell phone.
• Using a friendly tone in verbal and written communication.
• Respecting people’speople’s time and keeping appointments.

10.Be Consistent

Be on your boss’sboss’s good books being consistent. Your boss should know that they can always count on you.

Some examples of being dependable include consistency in performance, attitude, and work quality, maintaining the company’s passion and what it does; keeping your word; being reliable; being punctual, and meeting deadlines.

Other ways are being organized, stepping up, providing timely updates, assisting colleagues, and being a good team player; participating in meetings and sharing your ideas, thoughts, opinions, suggestions and recommendations.