How Did I Not See This Coming?: A New Manager's Guide to Avoiding Total Disaster

INTRODUCTION

Managers have a terrible reputation. The article “Think Your Friends Have Horrible Bosses, Too? You’re Probably Right” cites a survey by monster.com in which 38 percent of employees rated their boss as “horrible,” and more than 50 percent rated their boss a 1 or 2 on a scale of 1 to 5. Gallup’s 2015 State of the American Manager: Analytics and Advice for Leaders noted that nearly half of people who quit their jobs do so to get away from their managers.

You might be tempted to assume that management, as a profession, attracts annoying people. Or perhaps the nature of the role brings out the worst in otherwise kind, generous, and reasonable folks? There are more than 2 million managers in the United States, according to the latest ...