If you have ever worked for a micromanager, raise. yo. hand. ??‍♀️??‍♂️

Uh huh. I see you.

Being micromanaged can feel invasive, exhausting, frustrating and [fill in your experience here].

It can feel cutthroat sometimes, too.

As in, if you don’t dot every “i” and cross every “t,” then you’re going to lose your job.

Just writing that makes my immune system shutter.

Living with the fear of losing your job and income is rough.

But, what if that micromanager was actually giving you an opportunity to determine how committed you really are to the objectives of your role, and meeting or exceeding those objectives?

What if being micromanaged was for your benefit?

Maybe your experience has gone something like this…

Your manager just told you what to do and how to do it.

You want to achieve the same thing they want and you have an idea of how to do it better, but they don’t seem to be receptive to alternatives, so you don’t share your idea.

Maybe you chalk it up to pursing “the path of least resistance.”

Or something like that, right?

So, you end up feeling frustrated and begrudgingly complete the task or project their way.

But, by you not speaking up, continuing to feel frustrated, and doing things their way, you don’t get to practice speaking up and sharing your ideas.

Repeat this process, day-in and day-out, and you have death by a thousand cuts.

You’re spent. Exhausted from trying to do it their way.

You feel defeated.

And, maybe you end up feeling undervalued or not valued at all.

So, what’s really happening here?

Often, under micromanagement, I see employees give their power away.

Instead of rising to the challenge they shrink back and, again, think that the path of least resistance is easiest.

It might be easier, but shrinking back is definitely not as rewarding – personally and financially – as stretching yourself to meet high standards.

So, what can you do to rise to the challenge of a micromanager?

First, do a baseline assessment by looking at your goals for the year and objectively (as possible) ask yourself, “Am I meeting or exceeding my goals?”

If there’s room for improvement, then ask, “What’s one step I can take to begin to meet or exceed my goals?”

You don’t have to come up with 10,000 steps.

Just the next step.

And, it doesn’t have to be a good step, or a step you’ll actually take.

It just has to be a step.

Because, as soon as you identify one step, more will reveal themselves.

Better ones.

Ones that make you look brilliant.

And, you are, by the way. ?

So, if you’re being micromanaged, how are you thinking about it?

Get honest with yourself, check out your thoughts, and then get real about what YOU can do to raise the bar on your commitment to excellence.

If you want someone to check out your thoughts and brainstorm steps to improve your performance, then schedule a free 30-minute career strategy session with me.

There’s no reason for you to feel stuck, overwhelmed, or exhausted by being micromanaged (or by any situation, really) when feeling better and having a clearer idea of what to do next is just one, easy Zoom call away.