Your Job Isn't That Difficult. Your Manager Just Is.
The work is fine. It's the person micromanaging, gaslighting, and taking credit for it that's the problem. Here's how to survive—and when to leave.
You're good at your job. You know you are. The actual work—the tasks, the projects, the deliverables—isn't the problem. You could do this work in your sleep.
The problem is your manager. The one who asks you to redo perfectly good work because they "have a different vision." The one who cc's your skip-level on minor issues. The one who takes credit for your ideas in meetings. The one who makes you question yourself even when you know you're right.
Your job isn't hard. Your manager is making it hard.
The 5 Types of Bad Managers (And How to Spot Them)
Not all bad managers are bad in the same way. Here's the taxonomy:
1. The Micromanager
Needs to approve every email, revise every slide, and be cc'd on everything. They don't delegate—they hover. You spend more time managing up than doing actual work.
2. The Credit Stealer
Presents your work as theirs. Uses "I" instead of "we" when presenting team wins. You do the work, they get the promotion.
3. The Gaslighter
Makes you doubt reality. Changes expectations without acknowledging it, denies things they said (even when you have proof), and makes you feel like you're always overreacting.
4. The Conflict Avoider
Won't make decisions. Won't address team issues. "Let me think about it" becomes their permanent response. Problems fester because confrontation makes them uncomfortable.
5. The Incompetent One
Doesn't understand the work well enough to evaluate it. Gives vague feedback like "make it more strategic." Got promoted for reasons unrelated to actual skill.
Document Everything
With any of these manager types, documentation is your armor. Send recap emails after every conversation. Save receipts. Keep a running log of what was said, when, and by whom. You're not being paranoid—you're being prepared.
Which type of bad manager have you dealt with? Share your experience in the comments below—you're definitely not alone.
Share Your StoryWhy Bad Managers Stay in Power
Here's what makes this infuriating: bad managers don't get fired. They get promoted.
Why? Because organizations don't measure managers on how well they manage—they measure them on whether their team delivers results. And if you're good at your job? Your team is delivering results. Which makes your bad manager look good.
You're essentially subsidizing their incompetence with your competence.
The Peter Principle in Action
The Peter Principle states that people get promoted to their level of incompetence. Someone who was great at doing the work gets promoted to managing the work—but management is a different skill set. And if they're not good at it? They still get to stay in the role because no one wants to admit they made a bad promotion decision.
Add to that: many organizations don't have robust feedback mechanisms for employees to report bad management. And even when they do, reporting up rarely results in meaningful change. Your feedback goes into a file somewhere. Your manager gets "coaching." Nothing actually changes.
Your Performance Protects You—But Only to a Point
Being excellent at your job gives you options. It makes you harder to dismiss, easier to transfer, and more attractive to other teams or companies. But excellence alone won't fix a bad manager situation. At some point, you have to decide: is this worth staying for?
Have you ever stayed in a role longer than you should have because the work itself was good, even though the manager was terrible? What made you finally decide to leave (or stay)?
Add Your ThoughtsHow to Survive a Bad Manager (Without Losing Yourself)
If you're not ready to leave—or if leaving isn't an option right now—here's how to protect yourself:
1. Manage Up Strategically
Yes, you shouldn't have to. But until you have a better option, managing up is damage control.
- Overcommunicate: Send weekly recaps of your work, even if they don't ask. It creates a paper trail and keeps them informed without requiring them to manage you.
- Frame your work in their priorities: If they care about looking good to leadership, position your work as helping them achieve that.
- Anticipate their anxiety: If they're a micromanager, proactively share updates. If they're conflict-avoidant, present decisions as low-risk.
2. Build Relationships Outside Your Manager
Your manager is not your only path to advancement. Build relationships with:
- Your skip-level (your manager's manager)
- Leaders in other departments
- Senior individual contributors who have influence
- People in your function at other companies (your external network)
These relationships give you visibility, perspective, and options. If your manager is blocking you, these people can open doors.
3. Protect Your Mental Health
Working for a bad manager is emotionally exhausting. You need boundaries:
- Don't internalize their chaos. Their disorganization is not your emergency.
- Separate your worth from their feedback. If they're incompetent, their evaluation of you is not reliable.
- Find community. Talk to people who get it. (The Corporate Clock Out is built for exactly this.)
Your Manager's Opinion of You Is Not the Truth
A bad manager will make you question your abilities. Don't let them. You know your value. Collect evidence of your impact—emails from stakeholders, successful project outcomes, peer feedback. That's your truth. Not their distorted version of it.
4. Document Everything (Yes, Again)
This deserves its own section because it's that important.
Document:
- Every time they change direction or move goalposts
- Every time they take credit for your work
- Every time they contradict themselves
- Every time they make a commitment and don't follow through
Why? Because if you ever need to escalate to HR, file a complaint, or defend yourself in a restructuring, you'll have receipts. And receipts matter.
What's your go-to survival strategy when dealing with a difficult manager? Drop your best tip in the comments—someone needs to hear it.
Share Your TipWhen to Stop Trying to Make It Work
Sometimes survival isn't enough. Sometimes you need to leave. Here's when:
Leave When It's Affecting Your Health
If you're losing sleep, developing physical symptoms (headaches, stomach issues, anxiety), or dreading Monday before the weekend even ends—that's your body telling you this isn't sustainable.
No job is worth your health. Full stop.
Leave When You've Stopped Learning
A bad manager won't develop you. They won't stretch you. They won't open doors. If you've been in the role for 6+ months and you're not growing, you're stagnating.
Stagnation is career death, especially early in your career.
Leave When You've Lost Respect for Them
Once you've lost respect for your manager, it's almost impossible to get it back. And working for someone you don't respect is corrosive.
You'll start phoning it in. You'll disengage. You'll become cynical. That's not who you are. That's what they're turning you into.
Leave When There's No Path Forward
If your manager is blocking your advancement, and there's no way around them (lateral move, transfer to another team, skip-level sponsorship)—then the only path forward is out.
Loyalty to a Bad Manager Is Loyalty Misplaced
You don't owe them your career. You don't owe them your sanity. You don't owe them more time if they've proven they won't invest in you. Your loyalty should be to yourself, your growth, and your future. When those are no longer possible in your current role, it's time to go.
For those who've left a job because of a bad manager: what was the final straw? And for those still deciding: what's holding you back?
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