I know if management asks me repeatedly if I’ve gotten something done, I will stall even longer.  Being micromanaged triggers something in me that makes me feel like a kid.  I just want to shout “If I was done I would tell you now leave me alone.”  It was so frustrating.  But now that I’ve had some experience in the management role, I realize there was one thing I could have done that would have stopped the micromanaging.

I realized if I would have just given status updates weekly or even daily, (depending on the situation), I wouldn’t have been micromanaged.  Most likely your boss has a lot on their plate and they can’t assume to know what you have going on.  They trust you to do your work but if they keep bugging you about something or seem to be micromanaging, then you aren’t sharing enough with them. I don’t think they want you to come in after each task but they would appreciate quick updates.  

Try this:  Send a quick email on Friday afternoons that share these 4 things:  

What you finished this week. 

Most managers don’t need an hour by hour update on what you were doing (unless you’re on billable time of course) but they want to know what you’ve done.  It can be a quick list.

What is in process. 

Let them know if you are waiting on someone else or if there is trouble with completing it.  Maybe a project you are working on takes a full month to complete so give an update on that. 

What you plan to work on next week. 

Starting a new project or taking care of the one time a month tasks.  Your boss may have something more important for you to work on and having this knowledge helps them plan and lets you know what’s a priority.

Anything they need to know. 

Maybe you are on vacation next week and need to remind them.  Remember, most people don’t like surprises at work.  Imagine that an irate but very valued customer says that they are going to go to the CEO to complain about something.  That information needs to come to your boss from you – your boss shouldn’t be hearing it from the CEO.

Have you had a micromanaging boss? I’d love to hear more about it.  What did they do?  How did you handle it?