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21 Dec 2020
How to Learn From Your Bosses?
Written by Gauri Kalurkar
The key to growth is continued learning. In the corporate world, where one spends a good chunk of their working life in the office, there is a lot to learn. It is no surprise that you get to learn a lot from your bosses or superiors at work. Here are some insights into ‘How you can learn from your bosses–
How to learn from your bosses- 7 tips
1. Keep an open mind
Unlike other relationships, the employee-boss relationship has a unique dynamic. This relationship is inherently hierarchical in nature. There is a great deal of accountability involved and you are answerable to your boss.
Sometimes this dynamic of the relationship can come in the way of learning from your boss.
It is important to keep an open mind and a learning mindset, as your bosses or managers are a treasure trove of knowledge and experience and have a lot to teach you (directly and indirectly).
2. Observe their work ethic
Unlike other relationships, the employee-boss relationship has a unique dynamic. This relationship is inherently hierarchical in nature. There is a great deal of accountability involved and you are answerable to your boss.
Sometimes this dynamic of the relationship can come in the way of learning from your boss.
It is important to keep an open mind and a learning mindset, as your bosses or managers are a treasure trove of knowledge and experience and have a lot to teach you (directly and indirectly).
3. Notice How they manage conflicts
Conflicts are bound to arise at any workplace, which makes conflict management an important aspect of any manager’s job.
Notice how your boss addresses and resolves a conflict.
Getting an idea of how they manage adverse situations is a great learning experience and will be of aid when you are faced with a conflict.
4. Ask Questions
Be it clearing your doubts, asking your manager about a certain approach he has taken or simply asking for an advice. The value of asking questions in any learning process is unparalleled.
You may be hesitant to put forth your questions to your manager, but remember, managers are happy to answer your questions and often like to be challenged by a tough query.
So don’t ponder over how your question will be received, feel free to ask questions, albeit, in a respectful manner.
5. Learn from their mistakes
Let’s clear one thing- No manager is perfect, and they’re bound to make a few mistakes (they’re humans after all 🙂 )
There is a lot to learn even from your boss’ mistakes. Being attentive to these mistakes, their impact and how they approach it can help you grow, and you will learn to avoid repeating those mistakes.
6. Let their success speak to you
Apart from their mistakes, you should pay attention to your boss’ successes’ too. If you find anything is succeeding, get down to it’s details and find out how it was done and what helped in making it a success.
Observe how your boss drives meetings, acquires new clients and grows the business. Ask him/her about their winning strategies, more often than not, they’ll be willing to share.
7. Strike a conversation
Go beyond the formal talk, and strike great conversations with your boss. You will end up getting an experienced individual’s insight, maybe about work or something else.
Share your dreams and ambitions, your boss may guide you along your way!
The idea is to not limit yourself to strictly work related communication.
8. To sum it up
Keep yourself equipped with an open mind and a learning mindset. Taking time and efforts to learn from your bosses at work will help you, not only with career growth but overall development too.