Your Boss Doesn’t Know

With the struggling person, you’re not throwing them under the bus. You’re not gossiping, not bad-talking, and not handling it the wrong way. You’ve already talked about it as a team and offered help. It’s not getting better, and it’s affecting everyone, including that person. Read I’m Asking You to Speak Up.

Why Doesn’t Your Supervisor Already Know?

Your supervisor is so busy handling so many things: their own role, their own computer, their own emails and texts, their own family, the maintenance of their own car, their own doctor’s appointments, other people, probably too many direct reports, and on and on. Most of the time they’re responsible for higher-level risk items, which means more risk and more stress.

When you say, I’m ready for a promotion, can we talk, or this person needs help, or we need this resource, you’ve helped that supervisor know, come in, and do their job.

Am I saying a supervisor shouldn’t try to notice when people are having a hard time? No, they should. Shouldn’t notice when their people need promotions? No, they should, absolutely. Shouldn’t know when a resource is needed? No, they should. But you should both work together. If we just assume the boss knows, first of all, they don’t. They don’t have all power. They don’t have all knowledge. They’re not everywhere. They’re not gods. They’re human beings. We’re all mortal, and we’re all doing our best.

Who Is It Really Not Fair To?

When we put that on someone else and then get after them for it, it’s just not fair. But you know who it’s really not fair to? You, for not getting that promotion. The people not getting the resource. The person who’s struggling. The team that needs help. We have got to get to the point where we start to speak up.

I realize that, at least in the United States, we were taught in school to sit down, shut up, fit into our social group, wait for the teacher, and be emotionally and intellectually dependent on someone else. I get it. We were programmed in high school to sit down and shut up. But if there was ever a time when we have to speak up, it’s now.

Why Are People Who Don’t Speak Up So Dangerous?

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: the most dangerous people in an organization are the people who don’t speak up. They’re dangerous to themselves, to their career, to their own needs, and to their own health, because they don’t get what they need. They’re dangerous to the team, because most of the time they won’t speak up about abuses, discrimination, or harassment.

The guilt lies on the perpetrator. Anyone who commits harassment, racism, or disrespect carries the guilt. But a person isn’t going to turn themselves in. It’s hard for a victim, and I’m sympathetic to that. But if you’ve noticed something happening and you could report it, say this person needs help, or say this needs to be corrected, and you don’t, you’re perpetuating the pain, the devastation, and the problem. People who don’t speak up are the most dangerous people in your organization, bar none, because it takes both.

Is Your Supervisor Part of the Team?

Your boss doesn’t sit on some kind of throne with a golden scepter, magically knowing what’s going on in the organization. We’re a team. You can’t look at it as if your group on the project is the team and your supervisor is somehow outside of it. That’s one of the biggest lies ever told. Your supervisor is part of the team, and as a team member, you should communicate.

So ask yourself these questions. Is your boss all-powerful? No. Is your boss everywhere at once, seeing everything? No. Does your boss know everything? No. Then why are you assuming he or she does when it comes to your career, your promotions, your needs, the needs of the team, and people who are struggling? It turns out you shouldn’t. See Your Work Does NOT Speak for Itself!.

A new listener, only on Episode 7, wrote that these are all ideas he tries to instill in his assistants but has had difficulty communicating. I don’t love that it’s been hard to communicate, but I love that this is a help and that we get to work together.

So here is the challenge. Write down one thing you’ve been assuming your boss knows, whether it’s a promotion, a resource, a team problem, or a person who’s struggling. Bring it up this week.

Bottom line: Don’t assume they know. Speak up, speak out, own your career, own the success of the team, and ask for the resources you need. At the end of the day, we want results. Let’s drive results.

If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.

On we go.

FAQ

Does my boss know I’m ready for a promotion?

Don’t assume so. Bosses aren’t omnipotent, omniscient, or omnipresent. They’re busy human beings carrying higher-level risk. Say it: just FYI, I’ve been doing such and such, can we talk about my next promotion?

Why are people who don’t speak up dangerous?

They’re dangerous to themselves, their careers, their own needs, and their health, because they don’t get what they need. They’re dangerous to the team because they won’t speak up about abuses, discrimination, or harassment, so they perpetuate the pain and the problem.

How do I raise a struggling teammate without gossiping?

Address it as a team and offer help first. If it’s not getting better and it’s affecting everyone, including that person, tell your supervisor you care about the person, that you’ve already tried to help, and ask them to come help.

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