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Communication Control Freaks

My manager over-explains things to me. When he gives me an assignment, he asks me to repeat what he said, and then he keeps calling me and visiting me to make sure I'm doing it right. It's hard for me to work this way. How can I get him to stop?




Your manager has placed you in the line of fired-off communications, and the first question is whether your past performance triggered this reaction from him. If your work has questionable quality or quantity, or its timeliness has not been timely, then it should not be too difficult to change your manager's behavior. All you need to do is fully engage in the job and focus on improving your performance.

However, if your performance has been solid all along, then you are dealing with an over-controlling manager. Managers who do this are not likely to change, as this behavior is typically a reflection of deep needs in their personality.

One approach that might help is to tell your manager how you feel, give him specific examples of behaviors that have been disruptive for you, let him know what you want, and then ask him to make a change on a trial basis. Be sure to let him see how he profits by granting more independence to you.

If he goes along with this request, then the ball is in your court to demonstrate that you can work without being under the microscope. If he ignores or denies your request, then it is time to look around, whether within the company or beyond.




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