Having a great boss (Link) is a potentially life-changing gift. On the other hand, many of us know firsthand that having a bad boss (Link) can cause a lot of drama, headaches, and stress. While it’s easy to love the great bosses and flee the bad ones, there’s one kind of boss that’s much less straightforward to navigate: the boss who doesn’t advocate for you.
Source: Harvard Business Review, June, 2018. Link.
First, consider the possibility that you are the problem. In other words, you may not have a bad boss — you just might not have developed enough or demonstrated the skill necessary for the boss to advocate for your advancement yet.
INSIGHTS: Many business people I have worked with consider this playing politics which they abhor. My question to them is simple. If you cannot or will not advocate for yourself how can you expect others to advocate on your behalf? Success in business is a combination of results and relationships. You need both.