What makes a boss tough? In your career, you will inevitably run across your fair share of good and bad managers. Some of them, from either category, will be considered “tough” bosses as well. While that level of toughness can be a good thing in some cases—perhaps it teaches you lessons and positions you for later success—there are going to be instances where the level of toughness really stems from that person being an ill-equipped or inexperienced manager. That’s the most difficult kind of boss to work with.

We have all heard horror stories about difficult bosses. Like the boss who takes credit for your work, who overworks you or who is unclear on assignments and leaves you hanging. How about the boss who doesn’t communicate, micromanages you, focuses on your weaknesses, or holds you back and promotes the wrong people around you? The list goes on and on.

Instead of focusing on the negatives, it is important to take control of the situation and make strategic moves to manage that tough boss, whether you decide to repair the situation and stay with the company or stick it out until there’s another opportunity on the horizon.

Tough bosses are often unavoidable
Let’s say you have been working at your current Biopharma employer for many years. You have really established yourself and your credibility. You love your boss and your team. Then all of a sudden, you undergo a restructure or an acquisition. You are assigned a new manager or moved to another group. Suddenly, the level of familiarity and the concrete relationships you’ve built up are gone. You are starting from scratch, working with a new boss and caught in a very tricky scenario for your career.

The challenge will be to re-establish your reputation and trust with the new boss. You may even want to put in extra effort in order to make a great first impression. Often, people in this situation find that the new boss is much ‘tougher’ than the last, and they feel they must prove themselves once again. Some find they are more closely watched—their work is criticized or scrutinized to a level they never expected. Has this happened to you?

Other people will start with a new employer only to walk into a total surprise. The interview went great and the manager seemed like the perfect leader, motivating and empowering. But they begin the new job and find out how quickly those dynamics can change. Perhaps they are faced with a situation where they can’t seem to do anything right, leaving them to wonder, how did I miss this during the interview?

This is why it is so important to assess company culture during an interview and to make sure you are decoding and critically thinking about a good fit before taking a job offer.

The trigger event
Things can seem to fall apart quickly when you lose the confidence of your boss. Perhaps you missed a deadline, or the work output isn’t what your new boss is expecting. You may even be a star employee who has been doing everything right—or, at least it seemed that way up until now. That event was a newly established ‘trigger’ point, and once that trigger is pulled, you find yourself on the defensive with your boss breathing down your neck just about all the time.

As a result, your new manager ends up watching you more closely, essentially micromanaging your every move. That approach is bad for the employer and employee. A micromanaging boss can have a dramatic effect on your confidence level. In an ideal world, we would all have perfect managers who value and support us, help drive our success and career development, and are a pleasure to be around. But wow, that micromanager sure doesn’t fit into that ideal picture.

Dr. Jim Harter is the chief workplace ccientist with Gallup and he has written that less than one-third of Americans are truly engaged in their jobs. He believes that managers have a profound effect on employee engagement. Even more striking is that in a Gallup study of over 7,000 U.S. adults, one in two, had left their job to get away from their manager in order to pursue better career opportunities. Bad companies aren’t scaring away these people, bad managers are.

On the other hand, a good manager helps to retain employees. He or she will increase engagement, productivity, and boost overall team morale. This in turn can have a long-term, lasting impact on the company and its profitability. Good managers help build great companies, places where employees like to put down roots.

Whatever pattern or rut you find yourself in with a not-so-good manager, it is important to be able to stay afloat until you contemplate your next move. Here are some practical steps one can implement to make it through the difficulties caused by the bad boss until you find light at the other side of the tunnel.

Getting to the root of the problem
Before you throw in the towel and call it quits, it is important to take a step back and dissect the situation. You still have to make the most of your situation and get your job done. Do you understand your boss’ motivation for this bad behavior? Everyone has a different management style, but is there one thing that is driving his or her actions?

Is she angry or moody at certain times of day, or unapproachable at certain times? Is your boss rigid and inflexible? Does she keep a list of all your past mistakes and use them against you? Whether she criticizes or judges, you still need to stand tall.

Personality differences aside, it’s never the boss’ responsibility to “fix” the relationship with you—that’s your job. Your main question and goal should be, “What can I do to make my boss’ job easier?” Chances are high that your boss also feels pressure from their boss as well, and you need to understand those pain points as you try and show this person how effective a team member you can be.

Speak up
You’ll need to identify the unhealthy dynamics of the current working relationship, and that’s a tough step because it requires being transparent and opening up. At the same time, however, it is your chance to truly listen and to give your boss a chance to relay his feedback and issues.

Both you and your manager should be able to share your concerns. Do not suffer in silence. Approach your manager with respect and ask open-ended questions. It’s important to state how you feel and where you could genuinely improve the work environment and relationship. Instead of hoping it will get better on its own, take the opportunity to tackle issues head on that may have eroded trust.

Communicate while “managing up”
When speaking up, also try to unravel your manager’s style, preferences, and driving forces. Is she fast paced and driven by rapid-fire answers and decision making? Or does she like to have more time to digest and gather as much information ahead of time? Whatever the case may be, good communication with the boss is the key ingredient for a smooth working relationship.

Understanding what effective communication truly means to your boss will dictate your outcomes for improvement, as everyone is different in this regard. Should you have approached your manager in person as opposed to via email? Put yourself in your manager’s shoes to get the point across in the best way possible and leave frustrations at the door.

You also need to be as proactive as possible. Try to anticipate your boss’ next request based on her top motives or priorities. “Manage Up” by doing assignments in advance and providing progress updates on your own.

This is a great way to break up the pattern of ‘ask me first then receive,’ and bypasses the need for constant reminders coming from higher up. Once your manager becomes used to you taking more ownership and demonstrating more leadership, the heightened micromanagement will diminish.

Always walk away with a clear understanding of tasks being assigned to you and what the expectations are. This helps to avoid surprises at weekly meetings or performance reviews. If your manager cares about every little detail, make sure you take good notes.

Manage your own career
In the end, act as your own leader, take ownership and make decisions autonomously. This equates to becoming your own boss, which gives you more control over your career. 

Once you effectively manage a tough boss to improve your situation you will be set up to prevent future situations where you are faced with a less-than-ideal manager. No one is going to manage your career but you, despite what HR says. It is crucial to always take ownership of the situation, no matter how daunting. As you get through yet another bump in the road, you will be better equipped to handle difficult situations, adapt, and move forward.