Startups and Horrible Bosses; What to look out for

Do you get anxious when you receive notifications on your phone? Or feel a growing sense of dread when you finally get the courage to check and you have received a WhatsApp message from your Boss (or Manager)? Or maybe it’s the fact that the best time of your day is when you go to sleep because that’s your only escape from your reality and you are oblivious to all the problems and challenges (aka gbasgbos) of the day.

Or maybe you feel stuck and unprogressive, you have spoken to your manager about this many times, but somehow nothing changes and then you realise you’ve plateaued and have no real direction — a rudderless ship.

Any of those sound familiar? Yup, and it’s not just you.

I transitioned into the Nigerian Tech industry from Academia about 2 years ago (it’s always difficult to pinpoint exactly when a transition started 😁), and I have noticed some traits that are in reality red flags when joining a company. These are not peculiar to the tech industry but since that's the scope of my experience, hopefully, you may be able to pick one or two tips on how to handle (or RUNAWAY from) such situations. I use archetypes to describe distinct horrible boss traits (however you may find people with more than one of these traits) but I must clearly state that these are MY opinions. In the end, do you!

Horrible Boss 1: The Sweet Talker
While this character may not seem “Horrible”, this doesn't mean that they aren’t dangerous. This individual comes across as a visionary, with big dreams and aspirations, and will find it very easy to convince you that being a part of that company is you making a big impact in the world.

The Danger: This character can tend to be a user, very good at knowing how to spot and exploit really good talent and/or potential.

What can you do? Ask yourself these questions, don't get carried away.

1. Why do they want you here? (especially if they reached out to you first)
2. What are they offering? (in terms of financial and career benefits)
3. Whom will you be working with?
4. What are their expectations of you/your role in the short term (6 months — 1 year)

Simple questions, but can reveal a lot about their motives and intent and can help you make a somewhat informed decision about taking up a role there.
In addition, have a clear reason WHY you are joining that company and from you moment you start, make sure all you do drives that reason.

Horrible Boss Archetype 2: The Noisemaker
This character is everywhere, on Twitter, on Linkedin, in the news, at every community meetup, on the road, etc. Sounds intelligent and on the outside — a really great person.

The danger: more often times than not, this character is empty, has no real value to offer and the company that looks so great on the outside may not have a clear vision and/or structure

What can you do? RUNNNNNNNNNNN. A company without a clear vision or and structure is a setup for a toxic environment and is not worth your time.

Horrible Boss Archetype 3:The Micromanager
This character is action and results-driven, they are all hands-on and are big on deliverables. They are always busy but will definitely have time for updates.

The danger: This boss will blow up your phone! From the moment you have been given a task, they will require updates every second of the day. They may not have a lot of patience and are not very empathetic. You will work hard and may not feel like you are meeting up to expectations. They work better with people who are proactive and can take initiative and if you don't have any of these skills, working with these bosses will seem like HELL.

What can you do?

1. DO NOT OVERCOMMIT aka don’t make promises you cannot keep. Be very honest about your capabilities and what expected outcomes and timelines are for tasks.
2. Ensure that you set clear work boundaries. If it’s not important and urgent after work hours are your personal time.
3. Have conversations with your boss and try to understand why they work with you that way. Is it a trust issue? share instances where you have done well with a project or stakeholder (or whatever the case may be) When you have an understanding of why, it’s easy to resolve and move forward to have a better working relationship
4. Clearly communicate how this mode of work is affecting your performance
5. Don’t take things personally

Horrible Boss Archetype 4:The Coward
This person is overly diplomatic, doesn't want to offend anyone and wants to be everyone’s friend. Always on the fence and cannot stick to a decision.

The danger: this boss will not have your back, when things go south you are on your own or worse it’s your fault (even when it was their advice you took).

What can you do? you are in for a rollercoaster of emotions and you need to be prepared for this. You will have great days and low days that feel like shit. Have a healthy work support system (within or outside the company) that you can lean on for sound advice and direction. Create a small but strong circle of trust with other colleagues and don’t count on this boss for anything.

Horrible Boss Archetype 5: The Bully
This is the worst of them all. This person has a bulldozer approach to EVERYTHING. They may have a lot of “experience” and will definitely lord it over everyone. They can be quite competitive and are similar to the Micromanager in being hands-on and action-driven, but are very callous in their approach and don’t mind stepping on toes and overturning processes(or people) to get things done.

The danger: This person can be very abusive and mean, will definitely hold a grudge and can be very very very petty. In some cases, this boss can come across as a sadist and have no issue dragging people over hot coals.

What can you do? again RUNNNNNNNNNNN. your mental, emotional and professional health will suffer terribly in this environment and growing/progressing will be hard. It doesn’t matter how much you are being paid, the best thing to do is to leave. (also expect some drama when you make this decision, these bosses don’t like it when you “leave” them)

After lots of comments and stories, this unique archetype was important to mention

Horrible Boss Archetype 6: The Psychopath
Not much much to say here, this person combines 4 — 5 of the aforementioned archetypes aka a real principality

The danger: Self-esteem, Self-worth, Self-confidence all in the MUD (destroyed to the point of non-existence). You will suffer miserably at the hands of this person and can kill all drive or motivation to be valuable. This trauma is very valid and can take years to heal.

What can you do? goes withdraw say but FLEE EVERY APPEARANCE OF EVIL!
Do not engage
Do not negotiate
Do not pass GO (monopoly reference)

Anyone can be a Horrible Boss, if we look inwards, I’m sure we can recognise one or more of the traits mentioned above — I know I do. What do I do? treat everyone the way I will want to be treated, own my decisions and faults and always put myself first (ultimate self-love)

Sayonara

p.s. some colleagues can exhibit horrible boss behaviour, who knows, I may write something about distinct toxic colleague behaviour…. don't expect it soon sha, I started writing this one a year ago