A Survival Guide for Working with Bad Bosses: Dealing with Bullies, Idiots, Back-Stabbers, and Other Managers from Hell

Chapter 35. Bad Boss or Bad Employee?

Sometimes you think you’ve got a bad boss when the real problem is that you are a bad employee, but don’t know it. This may be particularly true if you have a series of complaints about bad bosses, and the conflicts show a pattern—or the bosses make similar complaints about you. In that case, rather than thinking about how to deal with a bad boss, consider how you might change yourself.

Often it can be hard to recognize this situation because, as research by psychologists has shown, people don’t like to blame themselves for problems. We generally like to take the credit when something goes well; we tend to think the outcome is due to our abilities and actions. By contrast, when things go wrong, we seek to put ...