Identifying a micromanager

- Okay, first things first. What actually is a micromanager? It's easy to put a label on someone, especially when we're feeling slighted. However, we have to remember that just because our boss is asking questions about a project that we're working on doesn't necessarily mean he or she is a micromanager. Sometimes it means that there's a pressing deadline or that they're just having a really bad week. So let's chat through three ways to identify if your boss is actually a micromanager or if they're just acting a bit, well, cranky. Number one, you feel like you have zero freedom or flexibility. A healthy manager is someone who can give you an end goal and let you figure out how to get from A to B. A micromanager is someone who feels compelled to tell you the right way to do, well, everything. They don't leave much wiggle room and expect you to follow their exact protocol even though there are multiple ways to get to the same solution. If this sounds like your normal day-to-day experience I hate to break it to you but you probably have a micromanaging boss. When working with clients, I call this management approach work suffocation. They don't know what move to make next because they fear their manager will reprimand them for doing something wrong. One of the worst feelings we can have as a professional is feeling like we have to jump through 30 different hoops to actually get the work done that we were hired to do. If you're feeling like your manager gives you no freedom in your work, you're probably dealing with a micromanager. Number two, it takes an eternity to get anything done. A healthy manager is someone who looks for ways to free you of any bottlenecks that may impede your progress on a project. A micromanager, well, is the bottleneck. Micromanagers require multiple check-ins, typically in a day, and often require their final approval on everything. They make employees feel like they can't handle anything on their own and as though their judgment cannot be trusted. It can often make the employee feel like they're spinning their wheels. If you are finding yourself having to buffer in extra time to finish a project by a specific deadline and it's not from your own learning curve you probably have a micromanager on your hands. And number three, you're starting to believe that you're incompetent. I remember when I was dealing with a micromanager. My confidence plummeted. Because my manager would second guess everything I did I started to second guess everything I did. A healthy manager is someone who builds you up, calls out your gifts, and encourages you to take on more responsibility. A micromanager is someone who acts like you're guilty before you're innocent. They pick apart your work and constantly call out what you did wrong before they show you what you did right. They criticize every little detail and they make you feel like you don't have a clue what you're doing. So if you're feeling paralyzed in your work, if it's taking forever to finish a task, and if you're losing confidence because of how your boss is treating you, you are probably working with a micromanager. If you have a micromanaging boss, I really, really need you to hear this. You are capable. You wouldn't have been hired for this job if you weren't. Just because your manager is critiquing you doesn't mean it's all your fault.