As above – won’t bore you with the details but I am close to the end of my tether and it may be prefereable to flipping/walking out, however I’m < 1 yr employed and so could be fired without risk, and he’s unlikely to stop being a tit anyway.

And yes I am looking for another job.

Happy ending?

*sniggers*

Come, come, now Flashheart – try to take things seriously 😆

Dammit Flashheart…beat me too it….oh, hang on, that sounds worse 😉

I’ve had several ‘artistic’ differences in the past and no it’s never worked out well…but I’m not very diplomatic.

Yeah…I left.I was much happier after that.

< 1 yr employed and so could be fired without risk,

I think it’s 2 years now 🙁

If you’re off anyway then keep your head down until you have somethign to move to.

I kind of have- improved situations, if not exactly to the point of total satisfaction. And in my last- well, current I suppose- job it was raising my dissatisfaction to the boss that caused our working relationship to collapse completely, therefore hastening the end, which was good as well- I’d probably have stuck at it for longer and just come to the same end result with more bad times inbetween.

I bottled up my unhappieness once then spoke to a boss and it all just kind of burst out. It was sch a relief. Things were quite messy for a while but I’m glad I did it. I thik he was a bit embarressed.

Thing is we’ve made representations before and nothing changes.

wwaswas – Member
I think it’s 2 years now

ONly for those starting after April 2012 IIRC. I started 20 March 😎

stevied – Member
Dammit Flashheart…beat me too….oh, hang on, that sounds worse

😯

Yes. While I was looking around for new jobs a few years ago, my boss asked me to have a quick chat.

“I’ve just had a call from a mate who works for XXXXX.” he said. “Apparently he’s got your CV and wants to know if you’re worth interviewing.”

At that moment my stomach went into freefall, but my boss was great about it. I confirmed that it was indeed my CV as I was considering a move.

He promised that he’d give me his full support no matter what, as he valued me, but would prefer to keep me so would I care to explain the issues that had led me to start looking – he’d deal with anything he could deal with and if that helped keep me, then great, if not then he’d speak to his mate at XXXXX and tell him how good I was.

I explained the issues I was concerned about – lack of structure, no seeming direction to the work and so on – and he listened. A day later we sat down again and he answered the questions I’d posed, and gave me a nice rise to boot, then asked if I still wanted his recommendation for his mate at XXXXX – the payrise being guaranteed, not even dependent on my staying, so that I’d be in a better position to bargain with a new employer. However his support and the approach he’d taken was good enough to persuade me to stay and I was there for another 5 years or so I think.

Mind you the recruitment agent was a bit hacked off that his client had called my boss…

Ok, mine was reactive rather than proactive, but if you’ve a good boss then they’ll listen and understand. If your boss isn’t that good (as is suggested above) then I’d echo the comments to sort yourself out before telling them

While you will get lots of “yes” answers, you’re working in a bike shop. In which case the answer will unequivocally be “no”. Bike shop managers will not change their spots- good ones will stay good, bad ones will stay bad. You will, I’m afraid, have to lump it.

I was fortunate in my shop job in Scotland as the problem boss worked out of a different shop from about a year after I started and so rarely had to see him, but man he was a country gentleman…

Yes, kind of.
I have two directors. One is very forward looking, a great man manager, fair and balanced. Under him, the company could go very far. The other is a fossil. He refuses to consider that any of his staff could add to his impeccable structure (which is clunky, burdensome and plainly doesn’t work). He consistently demotivates staff and upsets clients. He has personally been responsible for the loss of both.
I had come to the end of my bit (was on the verge of a honesty explosion in his office), having had a load of work and a new client put at risk by his meddling (he’s not my line manager, the other one is). I’d had enough and spoke to director one, and I now get left alone by “number two” and given some new info (which I won’t share) which will make me even happier in the long run. Much happier now.

cynic-al – Member

Thing is we’ve made representations before and nothing changes.

OK, my take… It’s not pointless even if it won’t change anything, it just stops being about the job and ends up being about you- will you feel better for it, will it stop you ever thinking “but what if…”.

If not, then quiet life. If so then do it.

i’ve had a red bull al, I’m ready for this one! 😀

i’ve had a red bull al, I’m ready for this one! 😀

Posted twice, proof red bull increases dexterity except the fact I’m useless at multi tasking lol

anyway…yes set up a 1-2-1 about 8 years ago with my boss and told him I was unhappy for amny reasons, read these off a list and also suggested ways to improve them. He was fired a month later seperately for being a sh1t manager and i took my skills to the contract market and doubled my salary.

A happy ending, but in-between it was a bit messy.

The key is to take in solutions when you say things are crap. And try not to be personal, use the royal ‘we’ or the company or such words.

Good luck.

“I’ve just had a call from a mate who works for XXXXX.” he said. “Apparently he’s got your CV and wants to know if you’re worth interviewing.”

Bit dodgy for a prospective employer to call up your current boss without permission and tell them that you are looking elsewhere isn’t it? Still, glad it worked out for you.

I had an issue when the token useless guy in our team got the entire allocation of pay rise for the team while the rest of the us were overlooked (although we hadn’t been officially told anything). I sent a quick email to my boss along the lines of “Have the pay rises happened yet? I feel like I am more than pulling my weight, so I would hope to be getting at least a share. It would be good to have some clarity about where things stand”. We had a quick chat and a pay rise appeared shortly after.

Didn’t change the fact that it wasn’t the job I ultimately wanted to be in and I left a few months later, but it was better to say something than nothing.

I think that so long as you are careful about how you word things, you are unlikely to do much harm by speaking up.

Yep. First job out of Uni in a design studio. The studio manager, my boss, used to verbally bully me to some extent. Sometimes picking up on my work and turning small things into big issues for the entertainment of the rest of the designers and sometimes it came from no where and was just weird – About being Scottish or short or anything else he could come up with. The other designers started to tell me it made them feel awkward and that they didn’t see the funny side at all.
My first review was with him and the company owner. When asked if there was anything I’d like to say I laid into him. Told him, among other things, that he was being a dick and was embarrassing himself acting like a child – admittedly not a very mature use of language but it kinda came flooding out after me holding it for so long. I thought I’d talked myself out of my first job until the owner winked at me and shook my hand. My boss got a disciplinary and I got double the pay rise that I asked for.
We ended up being good friends about a year down the line.

Anyone told their boss they’re not happy and had a happy ending?

Rent boys?

Yes, with some caveats.

From some of the posts above your situation sounds different to mine but I talked and now my work situation is better. I work in a senior role with a salary that TJ would deem excessive. In many organisations that means sacrifice your life for work and be grateful you are allowed to employ your talents on their behalf. Despite this and aptly thanks to some people on here, I spoke extremely openly to my superior and informed him about the impact work was having on my life. I was listened to, took several weeks off, sought treatment and started the journey to wellness. I think it may be different because:
– My issue was health-based (Frankly I was very close to ending it all.)
– I had the backing of occupational health and HR
– Despite not really caring, I knew I would have other options elsewhere (Which you may or may not have.)
– I didn’t know this – but I had the support of the executive board
– Difficult questions were asked of my superior by the executive board…
– My superior was more concerned by this than I thought he would be – perhaps because of the above?

Now I have a better work/life balance, more reasonable expectations of me and an improved relationship with my superior.

Keep making the positive suggestions but bite your tongue and keep schtum about your own unhappiness no matter how hard it is until you’ve got alternative employment to go to. Then by all means let it all out,in as positive a way as possible,if you can.That way if it goes awry you at least have a fallback position or if it goes well a better bargaining position for change in your current workplace.
But you knew that already.
Hang in there al like I am with these bloody heavy wheels you recommended 🙂

Ta all…MB has it though, he owns the business, and despite previous representations, staff walking out etc he won’t accept he’s at fault.

May be worth getting it off my chest (again) though in a cathartic way.

I could go temping or something instead but there’s **** all LBS jobs around just now and it may not get much better (prob compounding the misery)

nick – wheels ❓

I dont normally tend to speak out about things, not in my nature to. But once a former boss came out with some cr@p and I just laughed out loud and said “yeah right” at her in front of the team (about 5 in total). She wasn’t impressed and took me to an empty office and asked what my problem was. And the floodgates opened.
She tried to give me a 1st warning, but had to retract it as there was no witnesses. That stuck in her throad I can tell you.
I carried on as before, found a better job about 18 months later and left. Then 4 months later the team got binned / merged and she was put on gardening leave and never came back.

In short if you’re not happy, get looking for another job. Don’t expect a manager to go “actually you’re right I’ve been a total dick”. It won’t happen and I think you already know that al.

Al, from what I’ve picked up in other threads, I get the impression (maybe wrongly) that he’s a lazy git who doesn’t really care about the business – just happy to let it bumble along and take a small income from it, whilst being pretty feckless.

If that is true (and like I say it might be way off the mark), is there any option to try and use it to your advantage? Offer to take on more responsibility for a profit share, and slowly edging him towards being not needed or relevant. You take control, make the money and keep him out of the way. Obviously there are risks in this strategy, but if you’re that fed up, its gotta be worth chucking into the mix?

Wheels, only joking(Edinburgh defence ).You once argued quite eloquently on here about how heavier wheels didn’t make that much difference for trail riding.

I am close to the end of my tether and it may be prefereable to flipping/walking out, however I’m < 1 yr employed and so could be fired without risk, and he’s unlikely to stop being a tit anyway.

As above really; I think you have to at least mention it, because otherwise their response can be “well you never said anything so we didn’t know”. Don’t believe necessarily that anything will change, but you have to at least register your feelings.

But ultimately, if you’re getting so frustrated that you think you’re likely to unload at some inopportune moment, you need to have a backup plan, and be looking elsewhere to see what’s available.

Geoffj you are correct – he’d never give out htat responsibility or money – he’s a lazy, tight micro-manager.

Nicko we’ve all complained before – no change.

nick1962 – Member
Wheels, only joking(Edinburgh defence ).You once argued quite eloquently on here about how heavier wheels didn’t make that much difference for trail riding.

😀 – I still would! (well in terms of times, not feel).

I have, in a round about way the boss heard I was looking to leave and called a meeting with me.

I expressed my issues (mostly financial) and he came back with a pay rise and addressed a few other management issues there and then.

Nicko we’ve all complained before – no change.

Make a note of it, and leave. If he asks why, point out that you spoke to him on dates x, y, z, and walk out.

Once you’ve got that other job lined up, you can leave in your own way really, from polite “we didn’t see eye to eye” to dropping your britches on the front door step.

Either way, as you say, biting your tongue just won’t solve it in the long run – eventually it’ll all come venting out, and get messy. You’ve gotta be selfish, cause nobody else is looking out for you or your career.

Twice. Several years ago about wages with my boss, within which he said if I felt so agreived, show me some offer letters with what your worth in them, and ill pay you. Two interviews later, I did and happily he did too.

And in December, after 3 years evidential info of me not being offered any challenges, training, up skill or promotion, I start a new job (same company) with massive challenges, snr/management position, residential training in feb and an increase in package on March 1.

🙂

I had several ‘moaning’ meetings to my boss, mostly around the state of the prfession and where it left me. I was proactively trying to find a way making it work as I had had discussions with him re. doing a phD. part time etc.

Then followed a long period of walk in to office, be grumpy for 7.5 hrs, sitting in a corner and then going home.

I then said “I’m moving to France, either I’m leaving the company (and looking after the children) or we find some way to make it work.” That was 4 1/2 years ago. Ok after 6 months I ‘left’ the company, and now am a sub-consultant but with many unwritten benefits and am basically still treated like a full time member of staff. They are my sole client. My professional life has really been turned around and I am massively motivated in what I do.

Very forward looking guy that said yes, and I will always appreciate it and be reminded of his attitude. Sad I don’t work with him anymore and he has moved upwards and sidewards.