Opinion: Bosses solve problems in three ways

I have no idea what motivates these people, but bosses seem to fall into three categories when it comes to offering support:

• The Devil’s Advocate. Personally, I find these the worst. This person doesn’t want to take sides. Loosely translated, this person doesn’t want to take your side.

I had a long-term consulting assignment where I wrote an extensive monthly newsletter for a large corporate client. There were copy, photo and mailing deadlines to follow.

The problem was that I depended on the people in the field to supply me with stories, angles and pictures. There were about 20 field managers, and three were either late or never sent in anything. I was really in a no-win situation, as I needed the job for the money, but I couldn’t do my job without cooperation. I had no way of knowing what was happening in San Diego or Salt Lake City unless they clued me in.

With trepidation, I went to my boss. I did all the things that you are supposed to do for a big meeting. I rehearsed the conversation with my spouse. I wrote down notes in which I cited specific examples. I had a list of solutions.

I never got beyond my first paragraph of explanation. My boss immediately went into a long explanation of the various problems in each person’s district; why I had to understand why I was not No. 1 on anyone’s hit parade; why these people were good managers; and how she had received complaints that I had pushed them on getting me material.

“How important is it that your employees get these newsletters on time?” I asked.

“Very important,” she replied.

“How important is it that I include a blurb from every district in the country?”

“Very important,” she replied.

“What do you suggest I do that will not impact my work yet get me a buy-in on the newsletter?”

“You figure it out, you’re the consultant.”

In short, I wasn’t going to get any help, she was not on my side, and I had better figure it out or a very lucrative writing assignment was down the drain.

So I used some tricks of the trade and gave out earlier, false deadlines. I also invented something called Featured District articles, which motivated the managers to send me material, especially with their own pictures. It went pretty well for a few months, and then the slackers started again.

Now what? The problem with The Devil’s Advocate is that you have nowhere to turn. Luckily, a better and full-time job came up, and I bolted.

• The Defending Marauder. This boss is almost as bad as The Devil’s Advocate. Their middle name is Hasty. This person jumps to conclusions, makes quick decisions and causes more trouble than you bargained for. I had a boss like that when I was in textbook sales. I called to tell her about a professor who was asking for too many samples. I suspected he was selling books to the used book companies, but I couldn’t be sure.

She listened quietly, and I thought I had just found a sounding board.

Apparently, she was a on a slow boil. A few days later, she called the prof and accused him of stealing. As we had no proof, this was not well-received and I couldn’t go back into that department for a year. By defending me, she cost me a number of customers.

• The Impartial Judge. This is your best boss in terms of defending you while being able to understand the big picture. This person listens carefully, goes over the salient points with you, bats around alternatives and doesn’t act until you buy in.

What I like most about this boss is that he is impartial until he has the facts. The bad news may be your own ego. If this boss finds for the other party, you are out of luck. When presenting to this kind of saint, make sure that you have all your ducks in a row. You also need to be ready for the decision.

The key issue here is loyalty: ours and that of your boss. There is a major difference between complaining, asking for a hearing and demanding action.

Before you approach your boss, you need to ask yourself the following:

What are the consequences of my asking for action? Will I be perceived as a problem-solver or a problem? If my boss takes action, especially against another person, how will it affect me?

What type is my boss – a devil’s advocate, a defending marauder or an impartial judge?

But here’s the most important question: Is there any way I could solve this problem on my own?

Sinara Stull O’Donnell is a professional speaker and writer through Springfield-based SinaraSpeaks. She is the author of “Be The Star Of Your Life: Are You Ready For Your Close-Up?” She can be reached at sinara1@sbcglobal.net.