POLL: Good boss, bad job? Or good job, bad boss?
2009 May 5
It’s only fair, since we already talked about bad bosses, to give good bosses their due (via TheFinestWriter Blog):
Break the morning ice with an encouraging smile that will lighten the dense workroom aura. As the leader, you are in a very good position to influence a positive motivation among your workers. Remember that a happy person is most likely a productive one.
In my personal work experience, I’ve run the gamut from great bosses to psychotic ones. It has caused me to ponder the question which I now ask you:
Would you rather have a great boss while doing a job you can’t stand, or a great job with a boss you can’t stand?
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Good boss, bad job! Had both, and the bad boss/good job scenario really just doesn’t exist.
I understand what you mean about the bad boss / good job scenario not existing, but in one past job of mine in particular, it was true: everything else about the job — the scope of work itself, the coworkers, the staff I managed, the industry, everything else — was very nearly what I would call a dream job, but the boss had something against me and consistently singled me out for criticism and scapegoating. Had the boss been swapped with even a mediocre manager, it would have been perfect, but as it was, I couldn’t take it and ended up leaving while processing a tremendous amount of inner turmoil about whether it was the right decision. Once I arrived in my next job, where the work itself was less exciting, but the boss was great, I decided for myself that it had indeed been the right decision.
Is that different from what you mean?
Nope, we’re pretty much saying the same thing… A bad boss makes even the best of jobs a negative experience.