How to Communicate More Clearly With Your Boss - The Muse

How to Communicate More Clearly With Your Boss - The MuseHow to Communicate More Clearly With Your Boss The perfect boss is a mind reader. They know how youre feeling and what youre thinking at any given time, and so they adjust how they treat you and what they assign you accordingly.Youd probably agree with that statement, right?But the reality is that managers dont have this superpower- no one does. However, communicating more clearly- the real-life fix to not working with mind readers- is something you can do in your office.This is what we call managing up. And if that term scares you or seems impossible in your situation, weve discovered the best method to try it out.In a recent article, Quartz writer Khe Hy talks about how his boss vague communication stressed him out on a daily basis. So, he decided to take matters into his own hands- with one simple emailEvery Friday afternoon, Id send my boss a short email with three categories The work I had completed that week What I was working on, including any deadlines that may have shifted or obstacles Id encountered What I was waiting on- that is, tasks that Id completed, but require sign-off from my boss or contributions from someone elseRather than wait for his manager to guess what he needed from them, he proactively put all that information in front of them so they could easily get back to him with a response, sign-off, or edit. It also ensured his boss was well aware of where he stood in meeting deadlines.But most importantly, this short email inadvertently tells his boss how hes getting along mentally and emotionally- for example, if he communicates the same obstacles every week, it opens the door for a deeper discussion about shifting strategies or extending deadlines thatll relieve some of that stress.The real kicker? Writing it up only takes Hy 15 minutes (and probably takes his manager less time to read). Sending this kind of message may seem redundant, but its a great way to keep your boss up-to-spe ed on what youre working on so that they can manage you effectively- and encourages them to be open with you on what theyre working on, too. Even better, highlighting your accomplishments is the first step toward proving youre worthy of a raise or promotion down the road.Even if an email isnt the right strategy for your gruppe, one thing you can take away from this is the importance of communicating with the people you work with. So often our frustrations stem from assuming someone knows something they dont- which is why it never hurts to reach out to a team member when you could use a hand (rather than hope theyll notice youre struggling and offer to help out), or update them if youre running behind (so they know when to expect a final product), or simply ask if communicating differently (such as emailing weekly progress reports rather than meeting every Monday) might be more effective.If you make communicating (like really communicating) a part of your routine, youll find that hop ing your co-workers become mind readers wont be so high on your wish list.