Has anyone had to endure a hard-nose boss? Life is too short to hassle with that. How many of you have finally got mad enough to do your own thing as I am thinking about and were the results of effort worth it?
zuki

Zuki,

Everyone on the planet has dealt with a boss they didn't like at one time or another--it's a part of life. The rule of thumb is not to burn any bridges. Before considering to tell him or her to "Take this job and shove it" I would strongly suggest you have something lined up to keep the money flowing in your direction--especially if you have a family to support.

Over the past half century, I've been fortunate and only had to deal with a couple of butt-heads that only had one goal in life, which was to make my life misserable. When I decided to walk away, however, I did so in a manner that made it seem to be in my best interest, even when it wasn't the case. The main thing I always did was to submit a resignation saying that it was a pleasure to work with that person (even though he was a butt-heat), I regretted have to leave, but the place where I was headed would provide me with lots more opportunities for advancement.

Jumping ship is not the way to go unless you're independently wealthy. Keep in mind that when you work for yourself, which I have done for nearly 35 years, means: no employee funded health insurance plan, no bonus, no raises, long hours, low hourly wages, no vacations, lots of expenses and no sick leave. No one gives a damned if you just had a heart transplant or major portions of your anatomy removed, especially if it conflicts with their Christmas party, wedding reception, dance, etc.. Even if you have to arrive on a stretcher, you must continue to work. Even the mail carriers have it better--they only have to contend with bad weather. If they get sick, they're covered by someone else--you're not. Miss one week of a regular nite-club gig and you're instantly unemployed.

Think seriously about this before making a decission. Those of us who have been self employed for a number of years will flat out tell you that retirement means you must first be dead for at least three days--and even then, rigor-mortis must be setting in before retirement begins.

Good Luck,

Gary

Hi Zuki!
I see that you've got a "hard noes boss" problem. Life is indeed to short for arguments and needless suffering. I personally like to bitch-slap and stuff, but I can't afford doing it at work. That's what forums are for !

I'm not an expert on the subject of work related control issues, but I think that
there's no harm in exploring a possibility of running your own business.

-ED-

PS
If you don't like to waist your time on arguments....
Do a search for NLP ( Neuro Linguistic Programming). It might give you an idea on how to resolve arguments and disputes and possibly prevent them. It's all about communication.

Work for yourself...Even with the facts Gary mentioned, I would have it no other way...Be your own Boss[you will have to suffer on accasions], but it is worth the freedom..especially if you are independently wealthy like Gary..

Being a hard-nose boss is not a strength, it's a weakness (although he might not see it that way). I use to have a manager that was tough and raised her voice to bark out orders. I use to call her "The tough Dove", but not to her face. Tough on the outside, soft on the inside. She tried to be tough to hide her weakness. People managers that get their employees to work because they like them are showing strength. If you can step away and view them in that light, it makes working with them a little less frustrating.
Starkeeper

hi zuk
i've been a musician all my life (i'm 56).
it takes alot of guts and foolishness to take the risk of raising a family on a musicians salary. first you have to make sure
your family is behind you (that's the #1 thing). its scary,exciting but my god the freedom you have. your success will be based
on your dedication to your profession. as one famous musician told me "So... you want to be a musician.....How much are you willing to sacrifice to do it? that's the question you need to ask. there's no middle ground when you do this . either your in it
or you not. good luck. oh yea , my opinion
on that boss .... i would walk,trust me life is to short.
good luck my friend
wrinkles

Hello Zuki,

Yes, I have been there and I know exactly what you are saying.
You have the luxury of being able to "plan" your withdrawal from the rat
race. But if you leave too early you may find that your next boss also
attended the same seminars that this "Bad Boss" took notes from.

Yes, by all means make plans to follow your heart. But don’t quit a
job when you are angry. Have more than one source of income if at
all possible. Leave on your terms. Keep emotions in your music, but
let common sense and logic design your escape plan.

Just my thoughts,

Floyd

Thanks for the wisdom and lots of good advice, as usual. I found it interesting that most thought I was planning on doing a music gig. No way, I might open up a music store.
Thanks,
Zuki

Thank goodness I get along quite well with the people in my department (pretty large company with over 500 people in the whole building). I'd have to say out of about 25 people I probably stay away only with one of them. The rest are good. My boss are relaxed enough to not breath down my neck all the time.

Around four years ago- I DID work for uuhm..a big bank and hated every minute of it. I took a leap of faith and quit BEFORE I had another job lined up, but that was when I was a vibrant 26 years old..he.he..I won't pull that stunt ever again.

I Totaly agree with Fran....
Be your own boss and enjoy your family & your life...remember this...

"If You Ain't Doing What You Love ..
You Ain't Livin'"

Be careful!!!!!!!
I was a desktop manager for a fortune 100 company for 6 years... I've got 400 recommendations from VP’s, senior directors, managing directors, you name it... I was out of work for 3 month where my boat my truck was re-poed and I'm a month behind on the mortgage.. I thought I could make it on my own doing my own PC Company... Yeah good luck... Make sure you have something lined up before you bail... It's still a tough market out their and no matter how good you are there’s 100's of others out of jobs as well... and will do your job for less money. I've gone from $32 an hour to $27 an hour and now I'm down to $20 an hour. Be very careful before you leap.. Especially if you have people that count on you to make the money!
DJ

zuki,bear in mind i live in spain ,some friends of mine (a small band of 6 english musicians) wanted to open a store here so what they did was ,they went to the spanish schools with the intention of teaching kids to play different instruments ,and also be able to sell the instruments to the kids,a great idea but their premises was large and cheap but it was off the beaten track,so after about 6 months of trading they started going down hill because there was no easy transport for the kids to get to the lessons ,and so interest started to fall and now their business is in trouble,so make sure you cover ALL eventualities,i wish you luck,mike

Aw man ! I have to let Fran be MY boss next week !
...... at least he'll buy a few lunches here and there. Hope it's not too cold - we have to work outside!

No way, I might open up a music store.

Zuki

Hi Zuki, I owned a music store for 15 years. You will not have the bad boss any longer, but you will have to deal with the public on a daily basses. So which set of problems is best for you? You see there is no problem free area.
I was taught never to run from problems, or something you do not like---but run to something you want to do, something you love.
I feel that's the way to make a decision.

Keep smiling, John C.

I like that quote a lot.. Run to something you want to do, not away from your present circumstances. I'm kinda in the same boat. I have been an airplane mechanic for just about 40 years now. I can't stand to do it any more. I have been a frustrated musician for the same 40 years. Anyhoo... I'm 59, and can retire in a few years, so I have dusted off the ol' git-fiddle, and getting ready to do what I love to do. I wish I could just quit my job and do it tomorrow, but I am a realist. I'm a better airplane mechanic than I am a musician, so I need to see it through to retirement.

Frank Herbert, author of the Dune series, came up with an interesting series of stories based around a character who worked for an fictional agency of the government known as the Bureau of Sabatage. The idea is that government will become too efficient one day and effective internal sabotage increases efficiency by allowing the most thoughtful and creative people to rise to the occasion. Their motto is "In Lieu of Red Tape".

I bring this up because truly creative sabotage (the kind that cannot be traced back to you and will not threaten human life) is a wonderful tool for redefining the chain of command in a business structure. It allows those with crisis-response skills to rise in rank quickly. It can also do wonders for your own sense of balance in the working world. Just a thought, if only to get your mind on other things than your woes...

Wow .... talk about your contradiction of terms !