When we were younger, we always looked forward to one day earning our own money and having ‘financial freedom’. Oh, how naive we were back then…
Of course, the adults who are actually working today can tell anyone that work isn’t as fun as we used to think it would be. The amount of stress, responsibilities and a whole lot of other nonsense that goes on in a company is definitely nothing to be excited about.
Some people would say that if you’re doing a job you love, you’re all good. However, there’s one aspect which can also greatly affect our passion for work – and that’s our bosses.
Here are some of the bosses we confirm can find in Malaysia.
1. The friendly buddy boss
There are many terrible bosses out there but there are actually some pretty awesome ones too. For example, friendly bosses whom you can talk to and confide in about your personal life; after all, they most likely care about your work experience and level of comfort and happiness in the company.
They’re not rare, but they aren’t very common either.
2. The boss who plays favouritism
In big or small companies, bosses tend to have favourites, which is pretty easy to spot – the one who always gets attention, seems to have lesser workload, and appears to have more ‘fun’ things to do, etc.
Moreover, they’d somehow interact more with these employees compared to the others.
If you can’t identify who the boss’ favourite is… it could be you 😛
3. The micro-manager
Some bosses are perfectionists or just plainly mistrust us with our work, so they think it is only appropriate to breathe down our necks as we do our work.
Well, not only does that add extra unnecessary stress, it also negatively affects our job. Somehow, these bosses just don’t get it though.
4. The sweet talker
During interviews, they sell the company to us as if it is the best organisation to work for in the market. Well, yes some companies are truly awesome but sometimes these people tend to over-promise certain things just to convince us to join.
They don’t always deliver though so you might be disappointed. However, since you’ve joined the company, you’ve no choice but to just suck it up and stay for at least a year. That’s if you can tahan to stay a whole year lah…
5. The boss who doesn’t know what the office hours are
Some bosses set the office hours at a fixed timing but magically forget about it as they ask us to do work after office hours and on weekends. Yup, forget the 9-to-5 stated in the employee handbook.
The bigger problem is when the work is client-related and needs to be rushed because, tight deadlines. Ugh.
6. The forgetful/blur boss
Sometimes our bosses can get super forgetful too. Busy ma! Even though we’ve applied for leave on a certain day (which they’ve approved), they’d still somehow forget and then question why we aren’t in the office.
7. The MIA one
Some workers have bosses they have to report to, check in with, and get signatures from, but they are somehow always MISSING when you need them.
They’re always out meeting clients, on work trips, or ‘busy’ somewhere.
8. The ‘anything can’ boss
Certain bosses can be super nit-picky but there are also some amazingly cool bosses who let us work independently and do whatever we want as long as we get our job done. #BestBossEver
They’re not rare but also rather uncommon as well. You’re lucky if you can get such trusting and chillax bosses like this!
9. The boss who just doesn’t sleep
Chances are, these bosses are the same ones who just don’t know when the office hours are. Somehow they’d send us messages at 2am and expect us to see the message and respond immediately.
Sorry lah, but most of us are asleep, and even if we aren’t, we’re definitely not staying up because we want to work.
10. The tyrannical boss
Some bosses blow up at every. Single. Damn. Thing!
Even a tiny hiccup can turn into a huge issue as though it costs them a million ringgit deal, but in reality it’s just a reversible error. Chill lah, boss.
11. The boss who crosses the personal level line
Some bosses can’t tell the difference between work and an employee’s personal life. Though it is cool to have bosses who care about our personal life and interests, some bosses think that it’s okay to ask about private, non-work-related matters (thinking it will affect your work performance maybe?).
Erm, newsflash, it isn’t okay. Plus, that’s discrimination, no?
Questions such as whether a person plans to get married or pregnant anytime soon are completely irrelevant and crossing the personal level line. Moreover, they should never reprimand you in front of other colleagues!
12. The useless boss
Sometimes we wonder how the heck can someone end up being a boss because they absolutely have no experience related to their current position, or just don’t even know what they’re doing.
13. The super generous boss
Some bosses are extra extra awesome because they would belanja us to some yummy food out of their own pocket.
14. The boss who takes you for granted
Some bosses think that we’re always up for extra work, ready to sacrifice our weekends at the last minute, and cancel all our plans for ‘easy’ work.
Yeah, the answer is no.
15. The boss who sees us as slaves
Some bosses implement unrealistic expectations and expect us to meet all these impossible goals just because they ‘believe’ we can do it.
When we don’t meet these goals set for us, we’re suddenly terrible employees who are not performing. Worse still, they don’t understand that we’re being overworked, hence unable to see why we can’t push out quality work. That’s why it’s important to communicate if you ever feel this way!
16. The super helpful boss
Yes, we do have lots of terrible bosses, but we also have some awesome ones who are willing to help and guide us when we need it. Of course, it is ‘our job’ to do these things, but these are the type of bosses who are humble enough to teach us where necessary.
Plus, when they leave the company and join elsewhere better, they tend to try and bring us over too. Woohoo!
Although we do have loads of awful bosses out there, not all of them are actually that bad. Many are super good bosses who can impart great wisdom and hone our skills in the relevant industry.
Also, sometimes we only see the bad in people, but when we reflect, we’ll realise that they’ve taught us more than we could learn. Some bosses lah…
Also read: 9 Real Malaysian Struggles Interns and Employees Alike Will Confirm Face at Work
