If Your Boss Is Threatened By You, There Are 3 Subtle Ways They'll Sabotage You At Work
If your boss does these three small things, it's time to keep an eye on them and maybe start looking for a different job.
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A / Shutterstock Nothing ruins a good job like a bad boss. But while some bosses are outwardly terrible, others are more like snakes in the grass, subtly undermining you in ways you might not notice.
So how do you know?
A career coach shared three ways your boss will sabotage you if they're threatened by you.
There is perhaps no more subtly toxic dynamic than the one between an employee and a boss who is threatened by their success and talent.
Career coach Jennifer Brick is an expert on all things workplace including the ways bad bosses impact employees and the companies they work for.
She recently shared three things to watch out for that indicate your boss is definitely threatened by your abilities and is doing all they can to undermine you to ensure you don't overtake them on the career ladder.
1. They will sabotage you by burying you in busy work.
"You're going to be overwhelmed by work that has nothing to do with your job and definitely isn't going to advance your career," Brick said.
But wait, isn't that counterproductive? How are you supposed to get your actual important work done if your boss is burying you with petty tasks?
That's exactly the point. It's a way to keep you from being effective in the hopes that you'll get fed up and quit, or that someone higher up will notice and fire you instead. Beware.
2. They will keep you from getting facetime with senior leadership.
Bosses who are threatened by you will "gatekeep" your ability to interact with senior leaders to make sure you can't advance, and that their own status is preserved by ensuring the pecking order stays in place.
"If you happen to have a relationship with their boss or their boss's boss, they're going to freak out about you going over their head if you have a conversation with them," Brick explained. "If you don't have relationships with senior leaders, they're going to make sure that you never have access to them."
3. They will never promote you.
"No matter what you do, they are never going to promote you," Brick explained, even if you deserve it and prove yourself, you will be passed over, again and again.
"They are going to elevate team members that they don't feel threatened by," Brick explained. It's as simple as that. And because they've kept you from building or maintaining relationships with senior management, you might feel like you have no recourse to correct this.
Brick also shared tips on how to deal with these 3 ways your boss will sabotage you.
In a follow-up video, Brick shared some simple ways to advocate for yourself if you're in this sticky situation, and maybe even come out on top.
Brick said it's all about taking the reins on your own career, not in a way that pushes against your conniving boss, but rather one that works with them for your own gain.
"We're going to be optimistic and we're going to find ways to make them look good along with us," Brick recommended. In this way, you beat your boss at their own game while also showing off your talents.
Brick also recommended being "proactive" about creating opportunities at work and elevating your "visibility" around the office. Make yourself a known quantity. Form relationships and put yourself out there.
But of course, this doesn't work for all people and in all situations, and sometimes you just have to cut your losses. Brick said this is a valid approach too. "I'm also a big believer in finding an exit strategy," she said. Even that, though, is part of her number one rule: "You need to be cultivating your confidence in your career," she said, which she calls an "absolute game changer."
Keep the reins firmly in your hands and move boldly forward and you just might leave that nasty boss in your dust.
John Sundholm is a news and entertainment writer who covers pop culture, social justice, and human interest topics.