Dealing With These Four Types of Bad Managers

While a good manager is helpful, consistent and confident in his team, a bad manager can quickly suck the life and productivity out of any workplace. It's no surprise that workers leave their jobs due to management problems more often than any other reason, according to Gig.com. Here are four of kinds of bad managers you may encounter throughout your career and ways of dealing with them.

1. The Grenade

This type of bad manager comes out of nowhere to complain or yell at you, even when you think everything's going fine. These outbursts tend to happen with little to no warning, which can cause plenty of stress. The Grenade is normally short-fused, unappreciative of his team's efforts and a poor communicator.

Try to identify what triggers the manager's meltdowns, and avoid them whenever possible. For instance, if being a minute late sets your boss off, always arrive 15 minutes early.

2. The Micromanager

Although they may have good attention to detail and really care about their job, Micromanagers also cause undue anxiety in employees while sapping confidence and positivity. These managers are generally always nitpicking and finding tiny issues to fix, which continuously takes the whole team's focus off the big picture.

Set up a meeting with this manager in which you can provide concrete examples of micromanaging and explain how this is impacting your productivity. Discuss how you can work together, define concrete objectives for upcoming projects, and ask for some more autonomy as you work on them. If your manager still wants to keep track of project details, suggest holding several meetings per week, leaving you to work freely the rest of the time.

3. The Sheltered Manager

Like a ghost, this bad manager hands out projects but doesn't help or follow up, complaining when the finished project isn't what he expected. The Sheltered Manager is often not there to solve issues, answer questions or be a mentor.

Find a way to meet with this manager to agree on objectives and expectations for projects. Then, network within the company to find more supportive mentors in other areas.

4. The Rescuer

A bit egotistical, the Rescuer likes to be the one responsible for the team's success. This bad manager may put in little work and shirk responsibilities, but he always comes in at last minute to help complete the task or project and take credit for it. The Rescuer likes to be a problem solver, even when everything is working like clockwork, which can cause problems where they don't exist.

Use this boss's management style as an opportunity to step up and advance your own career. The manager may like to take credit, but if you're putting in the brunt of the labor and heading a team, upper management and co-workers are likely to take notice.

These four bad managers are toxic for workers and make the workplace less pleasant. Fortunately, with the right steps and attitude, you can deal with these management problems and still come out on top.

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