Don't Pick a Job. Pick a Boss.

"Don't pick a job. Pick a Boss. Your first boss is the biggest factor in your career success. A boss who doesn't trust you won't give you opportunities to grow." ~William Raduchel.

As any young professional these days, I too am active on LinkedIn, and whenever time permits, I skim through the groups where I’m a member. And randomly, I came across this very interesting discussion this week, and from the time I read the comments and the quote, it stuck to my mind. I certainly can relate to the quote, and am pretty sure all of you can too. Especially I was privileged to have an excellent, caring and supportive boss at my first job. He understood when to interfere and when not to. I owe my career to him for putting his faith in me and for taking a chance with a fresher.

Having worked with few bosses from the client’s end, Sri Lanka has some very passionate and remarkable bosses. The difference being good bosses look good on paper, but, great bosses let their actions show their value. There will be charisma, which drives the employees to revolve around them. It is not the things that you see them do that create the difference, but, what you don’t see them do.

So what are the characteristics a remarkable boss has?

1. Calling shots is not their dream: In fact remarkable bosses don’t care about control. They help others to achieve their objectives.
2. Facilitates learning: “It's easy for a boss to debrief an employee and turn a teachable moment into a lesson learned. It's a lot harder to let employees learn their own lessons, even though the lessons we learn on our own are the lessons we remember forever.” says Jeff Haden.
3. Welcomes ideas from employees: Remarkable bosses don’t force you to do a task the way they want it done. They will give you the autonomy, and let the employee go in with their eyes wide open. They see the potential within employees and know the ways in which they can bring out the best in employees.
4. They don’t seek credit: There have been many instances in my first job, where the overseas managers were upset with certain project deliverables, but, our boss supported our team. He knew that to do otherwise undermine the employee's credibility and possibly authority. And he never seeks credit for standing up for you, and doesn’t say anything, because he knows it is the right thing to do.
5. They believe in their employees: When an employee makes a mistake, it is easy for a boss to avoid giving similar work to that employee. But one mistake, or one weakness, is just one part of the whole person. Remarkable bosses on the other hand help the employee get over their weaknesses and help them get through the tough times. They forgive, they forget, but, they maintain the belief on their employees.
6. Great bosses act as inspiration for their employees to achieve company goals, at the same time they help the employees achieve their personal goals.