I contacted Mr. Smiley to get his approval.No mere sticklers for detail, micromanagers can be obsessed. Maybe they bully you. Maybe they batter you. Or possibly they’re oh-so friendly and polite. Regardless, they treat you as if you were 12. But don’t take it personally. Just be glad you’re not married to them and learn how you can manage them. Your best bet: a proactive style and an eye to ongoing communication that helps them feel in control. And pick your battles carefully: Micromanagers are known to find fault. Don’t worry or quibble about the little issues; just make changes (however unnecessary) and move on. Here are some other tips that will help and perfect phrases as you go.
I contacted Mr. Smiley to get his approval.
I reviewed the statistics, and all of them have been updated.
I checked the inventory against last year’s figures.
As you required last year, I …
I followed the same procedure you established last time.
Before, you wanted us to … I did this again.
I called the office, and they said the deadline will be two days earlier this year.
I reviewed the regulation and found that it doesn’t require us to …
When I spoke to Ms. Sealy, I asked her about …
I found out that the biggest reason companies get turned down for the program is that …
I researched this a little and found that most experts think the best action plan is to …
Just wanted to update you about our progress so far.
I am sending along a task list so that you can review our progress, if you like.
I’m attaching feedback from the most recent customer survey. I’ll compile all the responses for our meeting in March.
At the managers’ meeting, I’d like to update everyone about our progress, if you think that’s appropriate.
If you want a short meeting so that I can update you about the project, just let me know.
Quick tip: Pick your methods of communication carefully. Some micromanagers double as control freaks (no surprise!), and they may feel overwhelmed by a volume of e-mail they can’t control. Others may have bad memories and won’t remember one word of what you say to them in person; they rely on the written word.
Even if he or she doesn’t routinely take the initiative to give feedback or direction (which is ideal!), your boss will feel in control and will more likely leave you alone if you seek his or her opinion frequently:
Does this idea sound good to you?
Do you have any thoughts about our current direction?
Does this seem like the best method to you?
Last year you said that we should … so I’m going to follow your advice again.
This is the same process we used last year, and it improved our delivery time by three days. Shall we use it again?
I think this was originally your strategy. With your approval, I’d like to use it again.
I think we can complete Step 1 by the fifteenth and Step 2 by the twentieth. Does that sound good to you?
I worked up a short project plan for your approval.
Here is our updated timetable. As you can see, we’re right on track. Should we continue?
I have a list of everyone’s responsibilities for this project and his or her goals. Do you want to change anything, or does the list look okay?
I’m using the same schedule that we used for a similar project last year. Does this look good to you?
Quick tip: Don’t be afraid to show initiative. Even if your boss turns you down, he or she will still feel a sense of power and will respect you for taking extra initiative.
Use questions rather than statements so that your micro-managing boss can actively participate in the discussion and feel a greater sense of control:
Statement: I’d like to get your input.
Question: Do you have any input?
Statement: I am interested in reading about this subject.
Question: Can you recommend any articles for me to read?
Statement: I hope you’re happy with the changes.
Question: Are you happy with these changes?
Follow it—and let your manager know that you are:
As the regulation requires, we have …
In your memo, you said that we should … As you can see, we followed your instructions completely.
These are the best practices you outlined last week. We have applied them to solving this problem.
As you know, we are required to … So we have …
The CEO stated that we need to reach each of these goals by …
Quick tip: Document, document, document and remember to bring your notes to the meeting.