Is Your Manager an Asshole?

I’ve been writing online since the mid 90′s and have used profanity less than five times. The term asshole however, is so accurate in describing a certain type of manager, I have no choice but to use it here.

If you’ve been reading along at The Technician Shop you know that I think existing management in the trades is in a world of hurt. There is a huge difference however, between the asshole manager and the incompetent manager. While the asshole manager is always incompetent, the incompetent manager is not always an asshole. There are thousands and thousands of well-intentioned, decent people who are in management roles, but shouldn’t be. I will also add that there are thousands and thousands of owners out there, who shouldn’t be. This is another story but does offer an explanation as to why so many people have been cast in management roles.

I am going to transport you to the article “Is Your Future Boss an Asshole?” written by Bob Sutton. Bob wrote the book, The No Asshole Rule and has an absolute wealth of information that will help you with asshole managers.

Although for many of you it is too late, Bob says that one of the most effective ways in dealing with asshole managers is to avoid them in the first place. No worries. Bob’s article (and his site) is still a boatload of help for those who deal with assholes. Make sure you read Bob’s list 15 Things I Believe, located on left hand side of page.

Go here for Bob’s article “Is Your Future Boss an Asshole?”

Visit Bob at his site Bob Sutton Work Matters.

Note to all you managers who have been my handler over the years: I can honestly say that I have never worked for an asshole. Note II: This does not pertain to those I worked with over twenty-five years ago, prior to entering the HVAC industry.