What do you do if your boss is micromanaging you at work?

Dealing with a micromanaging boss can be challenging, but there are several strategies you can try to improve the situation: Communicate: Have an open conversation about how their style affects your work. Build Trust: Consistently deliver high-quality work to gain their confidence. Seek Feedback: Regularly ask for feedback to show you’re committed to improving. Set Expectations: Clarify your responsibilities and expected outcomes. Document Work: Keep detailed records and share updates to reduce their need to check in. Remember, it’s important to approach the situation with empathy and professionalism. How do you feel about trying some of these strategies?

I think with my experience this began as a trust issue. After moving to a new shift the Supervisor must learn their staff and vice versa. At the end of the day the Shift Supervisor is responsible for everything that occurs within the Communication Center. At that time with myself being newer to the profession as a Telecommunicator I took the opportunity to learn about my Supervisor through their actions including micromanaging. I took it upon myself knowing that they have a stressful job and to do a much as I could to showcase my abilities and alleviate any stress. After communicating (which is key) to my Supervisor and letting them see me do certain job tasks before they even had to ask, we had a sense of mutual trust and respect.

What I did in this situation, after the initial frustration of being micromanaged subsided, was to clarify the expectations my boss had of the position and me. I explained my understanding of the responsibilities assigned to the position, the tools/resources available, and how progress was measured. After that, it was a matter of giving the information requested by the micromanager, in a way the actual questions I was being asked is answered but also answering the person micromanaging in a way they felt supported enough to move on other things they need to deal with. That scenario, repeated consistently over time, eventually developed an unspoken trust between that person and myself that I ended up appreciating, a lot. Just a thought.

I think that a boss with this type of behavior may be driven by their own pressures. I would ask how I can enhance their confidence in my work, and provide regular updates to build trust.I would also clarify what my expectations are with my boss. I would communicate with them letting them know that I've noticed frequent check-ins and detailed oversight on their part but let them know that while it may be well intentioned, it sometimes make it challenging for me to fully leverage my skills and focus on delivering the best results. I would tell them that with a bit more autonomy, I could enhance my performance and contribute even more effectively to our team goals.

Boldly open a dialogue with the boss and be open and take points for reasons that makes him/her feel like they need to micromanaging him or her. Challenge that behaviour,to provide you a week trial to prove that you are self-sufficient without being micro-managed by them. If you were able to show results without being micro-managed (on successful completion of the week meeting the highlighted issues)then ask them to step back to allow you to do your duty without further hindrance. Take it to the higher management and highlight that his boss's micromanagement behaviour is blocking him/her production rather helping it 😎🤘💥 #extraordinarytogether

Communication is the key component to being successful in any profession. Also the delivery of the message is just as important as the message itself. Throughout I have chosen to have these types of conversations in private and respectfully express my feelings and give my Supervisor the ability to express any concerns. The approach and delivery are so important especially providing strength-based feedback and avoiding the negativity bias. You must be able to not just hear what is being said but actually taking the time to listen to concerns. I personally write concerns down, review them and find the best path forward to mitigate any concerns. The middle-ground is easier to find when both individuals are sincere and approachable.

Open dialogue. However, I recently had to live my previous employer due to finding on myself how difficult could have been in the future due to the negative impact this had with other colleagues. I felt I had to make a personal choice before it was kind of late for my wellbeing and mental health.

A quick way to demonstrate your reliability is to speak to past accomplishments. Remind your boss about previous critical moments that you proved your dependability and consistently out performed your peers. Communicate these accomplishments in a calm and confident demeanor will relay your experience and reliability to your superiors. This will allow them to process with a hands off approach and lessen the micromanagement.

I would ask if we could incorporate some project management tools that could track progress, and manage tasks without constant check-ins. They could be a generalized platform for updates, reducing the need for micromanagement. I would also suggest communication and feedback through digital platforms, promoting autonomy and trust between my boss and I.

In my work experience, I have experienced plenty of micromanaging bosses and have sought support from my work colleagues, former managers, relatives and my union. Micromanaging is an abusive practice which will lead to burnout, low morale, lack of confidence, poor productivity/performance, poor communication and eventually loss of good employees. My advice is to not keep the situation private nor isolated. Do not take the behaviors personal because it’s your manager that has the problem not you. Don’t allow yourself to stress over a bad manager who lacks trust and confidence to lead their own team. If possible, talk to an HR professional with your company and see how they can support you and confront your boss about their poor behaviors.