How to Deal with a Toxic Boss? 4 Key Aspects

There is nothing more harmful for a good work environment than a toxic boss. A bad boss can change negatively the working atmosphere and even affect the performance of some people. How to deal with a toxic boss? With more than 25 years of experience in Human Resources and people management, in T2W we have seen this problem and we can help you.

We all have had a bad boss once and can recognize them by their attitude and the way of treating other people. Ok, what to do if you have a bad boss? Here we will give you 4 key aspects that will help you overcome this awkward situation.

What to do if your work for a toxic boss?

1. Don’t let your emotions control you

Dealing with a toxic boss is not easy. In fact, a very common mistake people make is letting their emotions determine their actions. The result is usually an even more complicated situation. Letting your emotions take over in front of the boss is one of the worst mistakes you can make.

Reacting angrily will turn out to be even more problematic. First, that reaction could end up making you the center of all the negative comments your boss make or you could even get an unfair increase in your regular work. That would make things just more complicated.

Even worst, if you fail to control your emotions you might end up losing your job. Also, another scenario you want to avoid at all costs is being marked as a bad employee not only within the organization, but also in your boss’ professional network. That would be terrible for your career.

What should you do then? You need to turn off your emotions at work. Before going out the door or, if you work from home, before turning on the computer, try to assume a cold and relaxed attitude. Remember that even in that situation you are a professional and everything you say and do reflects your quality as a professional. Always be polite.

2. Don’t let the job absorb your life

Another common mistake you can make when you have a toxic boss is taking the negative criticism with you and let it consume you. Having those words in your mind for the rest of the day won’t be good for your mental health. How to avoid taking those comments home?

To do that, you need to have a healthy balance between your work life and your personal life. Here, you might need to change habits. Work should only take a part of your day. Once your work hours are over, leave all those tasks and the stress at work, which include those negative comments.

Additionally, if your situation at work is not the best, the last thing you want is to stay alone at home thinking about what happened. Try to have a rich personal life. Meet with friends and family, go out and have plans after work.

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3. Learn from that situation

Now it’s time to be self-critical. Maybe the comments your boss make about your work are not negative just because, but actually are justified. Have you ever considered that those comments are due to mistakes or flaws in your work? In that case, you will have two options. Getting angry and have a long face for the criticism or taking it as an opportunity in disguise.

Sometimes we don’t notice there are some aspects in our work that have room for improvement and that it’s possible to learn and grow professionally from those comments. That happen mostly when we have always been good at work. The negativity in which those comments are presented could make us forget we can always keep learning new things.

For that reason, the first thing you must do when you receive that criticism is to check if there is something you can learn from those comments about your work. If you can learn anything, leave your emotions aside as we advised before and focus on making a better job next time taking the comments into account.

4. Know the limit for criticism

So far, we have given you advices to deal with a toxic boss, since trying to control that situation is the best you can do. However, there is a clear line negative comments cannot cross. What is that limit? You see it clearly when the criticism extend beyond the professional frame and start having a personal nuance.

For example, personal insults or name calling are inadmissible. If the comments your boss make start turning severely toxic towards you, then there is no reason for you to stay there. Nothing is as important as your mental peace and have no doubts you will find another job. We have to highlight that even in this situation is better to leave the emotions aside. Keep a professional attitude all the time.

These are some of the aspects you need to keep in mind while dealing with a toxic boss. This situation might seem unpleasant and never-ending, but remember that it actually is just small moment in what will be a longer and fruitful professional career.

At Talent2Win, we strive to align your company’s business objectives with the best Talent Acquisition strategies available. If you want to learn more about the services we offer, do not hesitate to contact us.