Badmouthing your boss is rarely wise

Q: One of my co-workers recently became my supervisor. “Amanda” is great at managing tasks and projects but she has no interpersonal skills whatsoever. She tells jokes about people that aren’t funny and she can be very rude.

I made the mistake of venting about this to a trusted colleague who shared my comments with Amanda’s boss. Although he hasn’t contacted me, he did ask another employee whether she had any problems with Amanda. She told him no because she didn’t want to hurt her chances of being promoted.

Amanda obviously heard about my complaints because she has started calling me a troublemaker. I really enjoy my job, but I don’t like my supervisor. What should I do now?

A: Amanda’s abrasive personality cannot have come as a complete surprise. Having worked with her before, you undoubtedly knew what to expect when you heard she’d been promoted. And even though she could clearly use some leadership training, her communication style sounds more brusque than abusive.

Fortunately, this experience seems to have taught you two valuable lessons. “Trusted colleagues” are not necessarily trustworthy, and “venting” about your boss is always a huge mistake. When complaints about management wind up on the office grapevine, consequences follow.

Perhaps you should take a cue from your more cautious co-worker. She apparently realized that criticizing Amanda would automatically imply that the person who recently promoted her had poor judgment. So she made the politically intelligent decision to keep her complaints to herself.

Given that you like your job, your best bet now is to try adjusting to Amanda’s lessthan-perfect leadership style.