No matter where you are on the company ladder, you will always have a boss. It is, perhaps, the one universal of the workplace. Bosses can promote you or demote you. They can hire you or fire you. They can give you a raise or give you an ulcer. That is why you need to learn how to make your boss work for you. At stake are your happiness and future career advancement. By all means, let your boss think he’s super boss. Just use human relations training to get him to do what you want him to do.

Here are six ways to make your boss work for you:

• Try not to be best friends with a boss. You have plenty to lose. Your boss may try so hard not to give preferential treatment to you that he is extra tough on a daily basis. In the long term, you might miss a promotion. Any trouble in your personal relationship may find its way into the office. If you have personal problems with your boss, you will likely suffer at work. Also, your co-workers will probably resent you. Remember, bosses should not know too much about you. Nor should they worry that you know too much about them.

• Some days will be hell. There will be times when a boss may jump on you unfairly. You do not like it, but you cannot let your boss’ mood swings affect your job performance. Sometimes you will be hounded because your performance is not up to snuff, sometimes because your boss’ performance is being scrutinized. Bosses can be moody, and it is important to try to determine what their moods are about. Do not flatter yourself into thinking every nasty look and smart remark is directed only at you.

• Do not let a legitimate gripe fester. When things bother you, accept the status quo or do something about it. Either way, do not let something that annoys you affect your morale. The best way to handle this is to talk to your supervisor. Once it is resolved, you can forget about it and get back to normal.

• Timing is essential. Smart workers learn to pick the right time to talk with a supervisor. When a boss has a monumental deadline it is pure suicide to voice your concerns. Postpone discussing your concerns until he has time to talk.

• Get human relations training. Do not assume that human relations are something that you are born with. You still have to get proper training on human relations skills if you want to build a successful career.

• Do not be afraid of your supervisor. Bad supervisors might be unethical, harass you, or promote “pets” who should not be promoted. But do not so afraid of a boss that you cannot stand reasonable ground, or at lest voice an opinion.

While you should not normally go above a supervisor’s head, there are times you may have to do just that. Some bosses need to be kept in line so they do not victimize you. If that means talking with personnel, talk with personnel. If it means asking for a transfer, ask for a transfer. Even if you have to resign (hopefully, that will not be necessary), do not let a boss demean you.

Before you take off for that incredible new job, be sure to make a graceful exit from your old game. Here are some smart parting gestures.

• Say goodbye. It sounds basic, but many people fail to do the rounds before they go, assuming that they will run into their colleagues at some point down the line. That may be true, but most people still expect a personal farewell.

• Leave your new information. Hand out Rolodex or business cards printed with your name, new number and me-mail address to anyone who could be a useful contact in the future.

• Help out your successor. Leave your number so he or she can call with any questions, and unless you are moving to a competitor, bequeath her or him your Rolodex (remove personal cards and copy business cards you need to take with you). Also, ask your boss if he would like you to compose a memo explaining office procedures and the basics of your job.

• Say the right thing. If you suspect your coworkers might throw you a goodbye party, prepare a short speech. Nothing formal – just express your appreciation and share some thoughts about what you have gained.

• Write a thank-you note. A quick note to your boss (or an especially helpful colleague) thanking her or him for her or his guidance and support will score big points.

Interruptions. They make up the bulk of some of our days and represent your number one time management problem.

How often have you heard?
“Excuse me, do you have a minute?”
“This will not take long…”
“The boss has just called a special meeting.”
“Could you handle this? There’s a caller on line 1.”

To best handle interruptions:

• Remember your game plan.

• Use techniques that avoid interruptions are part of your job.

• Shorten unavoidable interruptions are part of your job.

• Realize some interruptions are part of your job.

Forgetting our game plan is what makes a lot of us trip on interruptions.
Does this sound familiar? You are in the middle of a major project and you have got a great train of thought flowing. Then the phone rings. Someone wants a reference for an ex-employee you are neutral about. You take the call, thinking that you will end it quickly. But the caller asks question after question. The call takes 15 minutes, not one, and when it is over you have lost your momentum.

You have an alternative: Remembering your game plan. You need to keep your priorities straight. Your priority is the major project, not the reference. You can diplomatically tell the caller, “Yes, I will be glad to give you that reference. If you only have one short question I can handle it now. If not, since I’m in the middle of a project. I will need to call you back.”

A number of simple strategies help you avoid interruptions. Often, your work is a land mine. Many managers are given offices to provide them with more privacy, but they face their desk toward the door. What happens? When someone walks by, the motion catches the manager’s eye. The manager looks up, the passer-by notices it, smiles, and comes into talk. Now two people are losing time. You’re less distracted by co-workers when you face a wall or window.

A person who screens your calls is an incredible time saver, especially on days when you need to concentrate. If you do not have an employee who will do this for you, you might find a coworker who will swap the chore with you. When you really need two hours without interruptions, he will screen your calls. When you do not need concentration, you can return the favor.

When you cannot avoid interruptions you can shorten them. Frequently coworkers will inadvertently interrupt each other to talk. Often this is enjoyable, sometimes it is purposeful and sometimes it wastes time. You can shorten these sessions by keeping your pen in your hand or your fingers on the computer keyboard as visible signs that you are busy. Also effective is to have a clock on the wall or desk facing your visitor.

While you can avoid some interruptions and shorten others, some are not only unavoidable, they are important. Many of our jobs depend on interruptions. When an employee interrupts, is that a loss or is it part of the manager’s job to open to workers? Some informal discussion that occurs between coworkers creates the base for resolving future misunderstanding. If a customer calls you with a problem, that is no interruption, that is critical information and a chance to resolve the situation.

All of this comes down to one bottom line: that handling interruptions calls for a set of skills and for a series of judgment calls. What you want to prevent is losing time by “going” with the flow. Interruptions are manageable.

It is not easy choosing a career, especially if you are a student who is just graduating from high school. Furthermore, it is not made any easier by the conflicting or even dedicated “suggestions” you may receive from the people around you. It is no wonder that many high school graduates just opt for he college course that everybody else is taking.

However, selecting what hordes of other students are also taking may not be a very good idea considering that you will be competing with so many others for the new jobs that may be available later. Except for a few courses where the demand for workers is high, it is better to select a course that not many people are taking now but will be in big demand by the time you graduate. To forecast what possible jobs will be needed five or ten years from now, you should look at what sort of national economy will be in place by then if the government’s plan succeed.

Jobs that are likely to be in demand would be technology and health-oriented professions like science, engineering, applied technology, industrial research, nursing, and nursing aide. Another important trend is the continued advances in information technology so careers such as trainorship and systems analysis that process and manage knowledge and information instead of material objects will be on the rise.

Even now, there is a large gap in the demand and the availability of quality technical manpower. For example, despite the large number graduating from engineering schools, very few of these are qualified to do design and R & D work for developing new products and processes. Manufacturing firms often complain that they still have to train new hirees in such work because many schools do not provide the needed education. It is therefore very important that you go to a school that provides good training, not “easy course work.”)

There are very few local experts in the leading edges of science and technology so that a new graduate in say, materials science or genetic engineering, would be sure to have a lot of job offers from companies and institutions that specialize in these fields. For those who are afraid of not having good laboratory to work in, you would have a better chance if you select a field in one of the leading edges of technology that the government has identified.

These leading edges are:

• Construction Industry

• Electronics, Instrumentation and Controls

• Metals and Engineering

• Textile Industry

• Mining and Minerals

• Chemical Process Industry

• Food and Feed Industry

• Energy

• Transformation

• Information Technology

• Marine Fisheries and Oceanography

• Forestry and Natural Resources

• Agricultural and Aquaculture

• Pharmaceutical Inputs

• Emerging Technologies including Biotechnology, Lasers and Materials.

So if you are thinking of what courses to take, a technical field would not be a bad idea even if you move into a different profession later on.