Managing Up When Things Break Down

I remember the moment my boss refused to help me. It was less of a blatant refusal, and more of a “he’s never at his desk, so I’m flying totally solo now.” The first few times I crashed. I made assumptions, I got cocky and one time I just straight-up flew too close to the sun. (luckily, I got some sound advice and apologized)

I wanted him to tell me what to do. And then, I realized that things worked a lot better when I told him what to do. More specifically, I told him EXACTLY what I needed from him.

I got specific with my communication and taught him that when I reached out, it I had already prioritized the level of urgency and importance. So, I ended up sending him less emails, but when I did, he read them.

I learned what things he absolutely wanted to review or weigh in on, so he knew when he had to show up to meetings with me.

I began rarely coming to him with questions, and if I did, I had spent time thinking through potential solutions, and in this way, I taught him to trust my judgment.

And when I overshot and was wrong, I managed my ego and apologized.

And when it came time for promotions or opportunities, I got them often.

Practicing yoga helped me rise to this task of managing up. I needed discernment and non-attachment, Satya (truth) and humility to execute all of things things well and with grace.

If your manager feels absent, micro-manages you or you have mis-aligned communication, send me a message in the “Contact” section to set up a free call to learn how you can begin to manage up for your own success and with ease.