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How To Deal With A Bad Boss

BOSTON (CBS) - It is the number one reason people leave a job: they hate their boss.

In Boston's Back Bay, it seemed everyone had a "Boss from Hell" story to share. One woman said she was micro-managed, while another said she was treated like a child. One man said he had a boss who was overly aggressive and a woman said she had one manager who drew conclusions without getting all the facts.

One poll found 35% of workers would choose a pay raise to make them happier at work. 65% said they'd take a better boss.

The problem for a worker is the boss is the one who has the power.

Elaine Varelas, a human resource consultant at Keystone Partners, said workers need to try hard to understand their superior's pressure points, like stressed budgets or unrealistic corporate expectations.

"The more you understand about where those pressure points are, the less inclined you will be to add to those specific points. So stay away from those, they're live wires you don't want to go near," said Varelas.

Conflict often emerges because of different work styles. Varelas said the onus here is on the worker to adapt. "Your job as the employee is to learn to deal with different styles of managers."

Varelas added that a worker doesn't have to love a boss, but should think about what they can learn from them.

Going to human resources or a personnel department should be done only after some careful deliberation. "You don't want to use those resources to complain about your manager, talk about your dislike for him or her, you really want to talk positively about building a relationship because ultimately once that information is out there, it is not going to go away," advised Varelas.

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