It is not right to call him a tyrant, but a strict
authoritarian sounds just about right. One of my first
supervisors was that to me. Here I was with my overblown
career expectations and entitlement mentality from 17 (8-4-5)
years of wanting to prove a point. My naive mind told me that
I deserved a good job with a 6 figure pay. The expectations
were to be scaled down with almost a year of tarmac
orientation. Now, my supervisor was hard on me. Too hard. It
almost felt like personal vendetta. All I got was criticism,
to an extent that I developed resentment. Communication lines
were broken and the thought to quit was constant. I was only
saved by a transfer. I believe he had the best intentions. He
wanted me to learn fast, and assume responsibility. Be self
reliant. But he forgot one thing, humans are driven by
emotions.
On the absolute contrast, my next supervisor brought the best
out of me. He started by making clear what was expected of
me. He was friendly and approachable. On Fridays drinks were
on him. He delegated and never micromanaged. The peculiar
part is that I never heard him shout at any of us. He avoided
criticizing us even when we blundered. Every Monday morning
he held a meeting mainly to encourage the team, and
occasionally ask us to pull our socks, but in a friendly way.
So what was my response? I never wanted to let him down. I
wanted him to be proud of me. I looked forward for the
compliment on Monday. I grew, and in no time got promoted.
Long after I left his flock, we are still friends.
I have as well supervised people. You can guess which side of
the coin I chose. Public criticism to me only brings
temporary adherence but long term disrespect and resentment.
Dealing with people is more difficult than handling machines
hence in my mind change this is a priority.
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