Reply #46: You're looking at it the wrong way.

[Th1onein]

You're seeing to it that a job gets done; that something that needs to be accomplished DOES get accomplished. After having been "bossed" around for years, you figure out that there's a better way to do it. You begin to see that your job as manager is not bossing people around, but helping people to grow in their abilities and their accomplishments; teaching them and encouraging them, and being the conduit for them so that they see that they CAN do things that they never thought that they could do before. Kindness is a part of being the boss. I don't think that you can be a good boss if you are not kind and respectful. To me, being a "boss" is being a teacher; getting the best from people that work for you. Bringing them UP, not down.

And, yes, sometimes you have to fire people. But, believe me, by the time that I fire someone, it's because they absolutely need to go. And, unless they threaten to have me killed, I usually try to find them another job. And, often do.

On edit, I forgot to tell you something: If you are the "boss" or the manager, you are in a unique position to be a very positive force in someone's life. It's an opportunity to do good things for your fellow man. That's the way I look at it.

People who look at being the boss as gaining power over others are the wrong people for the position. They usually don't hold the position for very long because they aren't good managers of people. And people are resources.