My boss is an ENTP and we get along great.

He has the NT that I need but I find that I even have to be quite J to make sure things get done.

He doesn't get rattled nearly as much as I. I like that he recognizes my talents and lets me run with things. He doesn't sweat the small stuff. I think a lot of ENTPs are like that.

What do you think?

Worst boss assuming the boss was a normal nice person I don't know ESTJ or ISTJ. But I haven't worked for one. I have had two ESTP bosses, One was great the other was a jerk. So I think we can get along with Ps. I think we run into trouble with SRTONG SJs.

>.> We have high expectations for anyone in authority. It's almost as though not living up to it loses our respect, which makes us not really care about doing good work.

ENFPs love freedom. Any boss that makes the work environment very strict and demanding will chafe, and so will someone who we feel is constantly "picking on" us. -shrug- We don't usually stick around long enough in bad jobs for the bosses to really become a problem.

Greetings,

I think any SJ boss is going to eventually be a problem for us ENFPs. I have an ESFJ boss, and let's just say we don't work well together. He is very small picture, has no sense of creativity, and thinks that "innovation" is copying something that another company did years ago.... The thing that bothers me the most is that he seems to have no true internal values or principles. Always trying to take the temperature of people's feelings, then trying to make them like him as much as he likes himself.

As far as other boss types, ESTJ's are workable situations if the one you're working with doesn't let the ego get out of check. ENTP's are great. ENTJs can be okay, but I find myself ignoring all their advice without any good reason.

Never had any trouble getting along with INTJs. So I think that might be one of the best matches. Of course any NP or NJ is better than any SJ.

Thanks,
Datbrown

I dunno. INTJ bosses are VERY VERY demanding...and they don't have any sympathy whatsoever.

Actually, I think a lot of people have issues with ENFPs as reports. Generally speaking, the lower you are, the more structure and process exist on your position, the more specialized and precise you need to be. So, already ENFPs are stuck in a bad situation, particularly with judgers.

Just based on my experiences of being an ENFP and managing one, I do think that ENFPs need a few things from a boss. Otherwise, things get a little tricky.

• You must have a strong sense of yourself.
  • ENFPs will run you over accidentally (or not) if you don't. If you're not threatened easily, ENFPs are a cool source of new ideas that don't accept the status quo. If you are threatened easily, the same ENFP is going to be seen as someone telling you that you're incompetent, obsolete, etc. If this causes you to instinctively react by challenging them, then be prepared for a debate. We can't help ourselves. We get off on it in a way. This might be worth it for the important things. It's usually a waste of time and energy for the minor things.

• You must earn their respect.
  • We're not good with org charts, titles, fiefdoms. I hope you deserved your spot. If you did, then ENFPs will look to you as a sounding board and will eagerly learn anything you offer. If you didn't deserve your spot, we'll probably ignore you half the time which will tick you off more.
    • I think this is the biggest problem that ENFP reports have to deal with. A lot of organizations have people that got there through political survival and seniority rather than a true meritocracy. That's why I think ENFPs work better in smaller companies where it's harder for that kind of BS to survive.
  • I have a boss who I respect greatly. I didn't have a clear idea of what kind of business lead I wanted to be until she got here. In particular, I didn't have a firm idea of the expectations of my current position because my predecessors stunk. She has decades of experience and made it clear what she needed. When I challenge her publicly and she says "you're right," I'm thinking "wow, I probably would've argued for another 5 minutes just on principle." I really don't want to let her down in a material way.

• You must be clear where the important borders are.
  • Otherwise, we'll make up our own. If we're wrong, something particularly bad can happen. Define the ground rules just so we know where the hard limits are. This helps save us from ourselves (we'll still poke at them anyway). But don't give us a book of ground rules. That just makes it look like there are no ground rules. Please be clear. Subtleties can be lost while we have our head in the clouds.

• But you must give them enough rope to succeed or fail and let them see the consequences of their actions.
  • It's easy for ENFPs to believe they're great idea persons, but it doesn't mean anything unless reality backs it up. If you deny ENFPs reality, they'll just always believe that they were right. We can be self-delusional that way. Reality knocks that nonsense out of them in a hurry. It's not enough to tell them that something is good or not. We have to experience it. We need the direct feedback.
  • I used to leave a lot of collateral damage in my wake while trying to make things better. To the ENTJ owner, I was great. "Keep it up!" But when I saw the hurt from folks I cared about, my boss would say "Well, I told you. You still really want to do things that way?" I started becoming more precise.

Great post Whistler

I have been discovering more and more that I can't stand being any bodies employee. I will always find there leadership style lacking or what ever.

I wanna own my own business.

I can't stand a boss who gives me no guidelines and expects perfection. If my boss wants anything out of me, they need to tell me what they expect, and when I don't meet their expectations, tell me what I can do to improve that. I like to please my bosses. After all, they do sign my paycheck. However, I need him/her to let me know exactly what he wants and not take offense when I ask why things are done one way instead of another. I don't ask because I think I have a better way, I ask so that in similar situations I'll have an idea of which direction to take if my boss's unavailable to give me guidance. I like to have a clear cut direction, so that I can work with my boss instead of against him/her. I know I'm not an ENFP, but I think that most of that are things that ENFP's would appreciate from a boss, too, since INTJ and ENFP are compatable.

Worst boss I worked for was an ESTJ. I just could not understand his jokes. They were not funny, and most of all, I couldn't stand the cruel/arrogant treatment of employees I saw. It really was a turnoff.

Probably the one ESTJ boss I ever really appreciated was a bit more healthy, and I only worked with him once a week tops, consulting designs with a group of IT guys.

Best boss I ever worked with was an INTJ. I loved how she understood. I loved her structure, her professionalism. We just 'got' each other, and it felt so right. I wish there were more of her around.. :heart:

I seem to have a hard time with SJ bosses too. My first principal was an ISTJ. Friendly--but order, order, order. We shared a room as we both taught classes in that school. I drove him nuts because I was a move the desks around, hang posters on the wall kind of teacher. He wanted lesson plans for the whole week first thing Monday morning. how did I know what I was going to do Friday? We haven't gotten through Monday yet?!! We did survive but I was not always the happiest teacher with this arrangement.

I have the most trouble with SJ people. I find them to be rigid, unsympathetic, overly reliant on rules and procedures. Have you ever noticed how they like to have their way?
ENFPs also have way more fun than SJ people think should be had.

Best bosses: I had an INFP supt. once. He was kind, let his staff figure stuff out for themselves, and was sensitive to people's feelings. Loved him as a supt--didn't always agree with him, but i respected him.

Same here, I can’t wait to leave this job of mine. I’m leaving in March – if not sooner!
The job is strict, inflexible and I can’t tolerate it. Plus almost everyone at work is of the “sheep” type mentality. One lady here is always kissing my boss’s ass and is rude to me for no reason. Reminds me of high school really, so immature! And she’s older than me lol.

Coralsisly, I’m with you on that one. My boss gave me a poor English speaking trainer so the guidelines were badly communicated and some things weren’t even taught! They only trained me for two and a half weeks and left me to float or sink – unfortunately, my boss expected perfection, and gave me a very disrespectful grilling in front of everyone in the office to humiliate me when I made a mistake in the third week.

The job offers no autonomy. I finish all the work but they refuse to let me leave. I have to watch my lunch break time just in case I go over. It’s pathetic. We’re adults for God’s sake, not little children that need to be monitored.

Everyday, I dream of escape. The contract ends in March but it feels like forever..

I dunno. INTJ bosses are VERY VERY demanding...and they don't have any sympathy whatsoever.

I work essentially as a manager in charge of a group of individuals who work with a lot of data, and I think that anyone who has worked with me can find me pretty accommodating...but I am also a pretty rare INTJ breed because I am pretty flexible with time and schedules as long as the work gets done and gets done well. I don't like sloppy work and I don't like half-assing work, but if you aren't feeling well, go home or you want to spend time with your family, go home, or you if you have a question, ask, or you are experiencing a problem, I try to understand. I mean you are at work for however long during the day? You should at least have some fun during that time.

Hands down worst boss....ESTJ. She was also a woman in a field that is primarily dominated by males, so I think she over-compensated for the sexist in the field by just being a b*tch. She had a terrible turnover rate among her subordinates, and was essentially blacklisted by those in the organization who gossiped.

She used to threaten me and was just downright cruel. She went back on promises constantly if they were things that did not directly benefit her.

ESTJ = micromanager.

Yep, micromanagers are the worse >_<

I still don't understand why managers like that purposely act cruel to their subordinates. I do wonder what goes in their mind when they do things like that.

Sometimes I just assume they must be really unhappy people.

Bad bosses should becareful though, one day karma could come back and bite them on the a$$.

My partner worked in a large law firm before and his boss was always good to him. After he left, he ended up working for a company which provided work for his old law firm. Now he actually hires his old boss to do work for him. If his boss had been an a**hole, he wouldn't have given him any work.

The butt that bosses kick today could be the butts they have to kiss tomorrow LOL.

Defiinitely agree on the micromanagers...ugh

As an INFJ, I don't get along particularly well with a lot of ESTJs either (although some I get along great with).  In fact, just like you guys, SJs who are more narrow-minded tend to make me feel trapped in a small box where anything I do is wrong for some minute reason.  The only SJs I never feel this way around are ISFJs or maybe female ISTJs.  I guess what made me mad about it was that I have ideals just like they do, but I don't force mine onto people in the way some of the SJs I knew did.

ESTJs are cool but when they go wrong or power-hungry they're the worst.  What's going through their mind when they treat others like you guys mentioned?  From what I can tell, not much.  Mainly exerting their authority and getting off on it.  I think enjoying being in power is natural, but to exploit it constantly, over and over at the expense of others is pretty inexcusable. 

Not coincidentally, the people I've seen fall from grace in the most unflattering ways are often these types of people.  Eventually, their recklessness gets them in trouble, and when they fall, people don't really want to help them get back up.  Just what I've noticed.

I think the worst boss for an ENFP is anyone who wrongly exploits their authority over you or pulls you down would be the wrong boss for you.. Otherwise, an ENFP will get along with anyone.. I don't think a personality type is going to change that, because it comes down to how the boss chooses to inflict his authority over you.. I do not react well to a boss who treats me like a newbie when I have been working in a certain industry for 7 years, that irritates me to no end.. I also don't like a boss who are dominitive.. That irritates me as well.. But, if they aren't dominating, exploitative, arrogant and ignorant, I like them..