Managing Up: How to Move Up, Win at Work, and Succeed with Any Type of Boss

by Mary Abbajay

Managing up is about consciously and deliberatively developing and maintaining effective relationships with supervisors, bosses, and other people above you in the chain of command.

Establishing strong, productive working relationships is the single most effective way to accelerate success in any organization.

Excelling at managing up means keeping your ego in check and operating from a place of strategic choice, curiosity, experimentation, and openness.

Authenticity is about spirit, energy, and personality. It's about bringing who you are everywhere you go. The key here is to bring the best of who you are everywhere you go.

Introverts energize from internal stimuli. Extroverts energize from outside stimuli.

Schedule meetings and be proactive in connecting and relationship building with your Innie. Tell your boss ahead of time what you want to discuss. Don't overwhelm with too many “pop‐ins.” Ask open‐ended questions. Give your Innie space to process. Don't make up stories about your boss's silence. Use e‐mail, text, or chat. Don't be a chatterbox. Understand the Innie's need for a little solitude and alone time. Overcome your own introversion to avoid the Innie‐Innie hurdle.

You want to treat your boss how he or she likes to be treated, not necessarily how you like to be treated. This is about your boss, not you.