The World's Biggest Boss Blunder

"Horrible Bosses" isn't just a movie title, it is a reality that every single company faces. Take a look around at your fellow managers and bosses. If you don't know who the horrible boss is, then guess what? It's YOU!

In this article, I'm going to give you a magic word that is going to make you less horrible of a boss, and it's going to to save your company from making a major blunder.

Maybe you've noticed something that I call, "The Boss Barrier". This is that natural barrier between bosses and employees where communication just breaks down. Before you became the boss, you were everybody's friend. Everybody liked you, they invited you to lunch, but now that you're the boss? Crickets.

I think it all started in grade school when "telling the teacher" got you pummeled for being a snitch. An "us vs. them" mentality tends to form between groups of differing authority levels and bosses and employees are no different.

If it is not actively addressed, that "boss barrier" can cause companies to make massive mistakes. Here's a quick story...

A CEO wanted to acquire a new company and placed an offer for $100 million. The deal was about to be struck when a lowly number cruncher (who didn't know any better) came to the CEO and said, "Sir, I've been over this a dozen times. This new company is only worth about 50 million why are you offering 100 million?"

The CEO said, "Because nobody told me."

Most employees are far too afraid of their boss. They don't believe that upward communication is safe. They think that their job is to shut up and do their job and deliver whatever the boss asks for.

That's why, when a project manager at the end of the project says, "Wow, this is really great work, but I would have liked to see it in red," they stop everything and redo the whole project in red. To the project manager, it was just a throwaway comment. But everything gets delayed, all because of the boss barrier.

But we cannot blame employees alone for the boss barrier. Bosses are just as afraid of their employees.

When we step into a new leadership role, we want to have it all together, we want to earn their respect, and have all the answers. That does not allow us to use the one magic word that is going to break down the boss barrier, enable upward communication, and prevent your company from making a horrible mistake.

That magic word is "help".

Bosses who can effectively (and vulnerably) ask for help are going to break down that boss barrier, increase human connection between employee and boss, increase employee engagement and productivity, and make the workplace a much more favorable place to be.

So stop trying to get blind compliance from your team. Instead, use the magic word "help" to start going after thoughtful engagement.

For more specific tips and scripts, download my free ebook "19 Things Managers Should NEVER Say, (But Probably Do)".