Don't be a bad boss of yourself

Be the kind of manager you'd love to have

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Good Morning, This is Laura, Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Today's tip is that if you are your own boss,
you should aim to be the best boss possible. Anyone

(00:26):
who has had a bad boss knows how difficult that
situation can be, so you should avoid making the same
mistakes as you manage yourself. I know that a lot
of Before Breakfast listeners own their own businesses in one
form or another. Others are leading their organizations. You aren't

(00:49):
answering day to day to someone else, And even many
Before Breakfast listeners with conventional jobs work remotely at least
some of the time. So while you might have a
traditional boss, a lot of your work experience is under
your own control. That means that you need to manage yourself.

(01:13):
Yet many of us commit acts of bad management on
ourselves that we would never do with an employee. For instance,
I'm not sure I have ever taken a complete sick day,
though people who have worked for me have taken plenty
of them. I have sat on ergonomically terrible chairs because

(01:33):
I couldn't be bothered to replace them. I love what
I do and I am happy to work hard, but
the chair thing that is just silly. In any case,
If you are your own boss, then think about what
a really great boss would do and do Likewise, it

(01:55):
might be setting clear goals and expectations, those that are
challenging but doable, do not create crazy and arbitrary deadlines.
It might mean dialing down expectations if you are not
feeling good. It might be maintaining space for real time off.

(02:16):
Another key component is smart professional development. A good boss
would be thinking about what skills you need to develop
and people that you need to meet, So you should
be thinking about this too. When you look at people
you admire, what skills do they have? How could you
learn these skills? What conferences would be good for you

(02:40):
to attend. If a boss would send you, then send
yourself and figure out how to make the most of it,
including presenting what you've learned to others afterwards. If you
are your own boss, make sure you have adequate equipment. No,
you should not be sitting on a kitchen chair from

(03:00):
your first apartment. If you need an external monitor or
special software, get it. Your productivity will be better in
the long run. You should also think about setting your
own policies. Ideally, a good boss would set office guidelines
about how quickly people need to respond or how soon

(03:22):
to follow up with a vendor who isn't getting you
what you need, So create your own guidelines, like you
will respond in twenty four hours during the week with
clients and on the first business day after a holiday
or weekend, or that you always call thirty days after
an invoice is sent if it isn't paid. That sort

(03:44):
of thing. You might also, as the boss, decide that
certain clients or people are more trouble than they are worth.
That is the kind of executive decision that sometimes needs
to be made, and it is okay to make such
tough decisions or draw boundaries in the interest of preserving

(04:06):
your sanity, even if it is something as simple as
asking for a different location in a coworking space if
a neighbor there is loud or grouchy. Being the boss
of anyone isn't easy. Being the boss of yourself isn't
easy either, But if you want to have a long

(04:29):
sustainable career, it helps to step outside day to day
details and think strategically. It helps to think about your
long term development. That is what a good boss would do.
If you are your own boss, either officially or unofficially,

(04:50):
I'd love to hear how you provide for your own
sustainability and motivation. You can reach me at Laura at
Laura Vanderkamp dot com. In the meantime, this is Laura.
Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of
our attacks. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear from you.

(05:18):
You can send me your tips, your questions, or anything else.
Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at
Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E the number four, then
Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me an
email at Before Breakfast Podcast at i heeart media dot
com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.

(05:41):
Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.
Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio. For
more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the I heart
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