17.04.2025

STOPWATCH BOSS SURVIVAL GUIDE

Monday, 9:05 am. Or Friday, 5:55 p.m. The boss rises in the office, where at this moment his subordinates must work diligently. He looks around carefully and casually asks "Where is Filipov?". Colleagues say something along the lines of "It will come at any moment" or "You left seconds ago". Asked if someone else could help him instead of the missing Filipov, the chief replied "Ah, no, I needed him exactly".

The team knows that if Petrov wasn't there, he would have been needed at the boss. This is his habit - minutes after the start of the working day or minutes before the end, he goes to check the available inventory. He is a boss "stopwatch", he splits the second in two.

The man is one of those who believe that as soon as there is time, it must be strictly observed. He seems petty, but he is meticulous and follows the rules. You will either have to follow them, or say "No" to him and agree on more flexible working hours, as long as this does not interfere with fulfilling your duties.

Flexible working hours exist in many companies, it is not unheard of. But in many companies it is the other way around - employees "check in" with an electronic card when they come and go. So you have to carefully evaluate whether your "revolution" will pass in the company and whether it is suitable for your job description. Because if you have reception hours, customers don't have to wait for you, do they?

More importantly, consider what your boss is like. If he is a "stopwatch" type, he probably believes that the more you work, the more you produce. So he will decide that with the so-called "flexibility" you want to unwind. No matter how capable you are, no matter how successful you may be, it's probably better not to try to change the rules, but to arrive and leave at the appointed time.

Punctuality is generally a quality valued in business relationships. No manager likes employees to be late either for work or for work. With a pedantic boss, however, it's absolutely certain that he draws from accuracy fairly comprehensive conclusions about you as a person and as a professional. He sees lateness as a sign that you lack time management skills and that you are not brimming with enthusiasm to work.

But there is another problem with the stopwatch boss. How, for example, to convince him that if he does not find you at your desk during working hours, it does not mean that you are running away from your duties. On the contrary, you want to perform them better after going out to rest for 15 minutes. According to you, productivity does not mean working hard, but working efficiently.

You can tell him about the scientific research that one - usually lunch - break a day is not enough. Regular short breaks increase productivity. Therefore, if it is a priority for the manager, he should not stalk his subordinates with a stopwatch, but determine what final results he requires and let them decide for themselves how to distribute the hours in the office.

"It's not about how many breaks per day employees are allowed to take, but how long they can concentrate before taking a break," says Bob Posen, author of Extreme Productivity.

The reasons for this are in personal characteristics. Different people are most effective at different times of the day. The duration of the ability to concentrate is also individual.

"Most people, after working for an hour and a half and then resting for 15 minutes, help the brain to consolidate information and retain it better," Bob Posen explains the data from his experiments.

According to another study done with time tracking and productivity software, 52 minutes of work followed by 17 minutes of rest is most effective.

"It's best to get out of the office and get some fresh air. But if you can't walk outside, drink coffee and talk to nice colleagues," recommends Tara Swart, a neuroscientist and leadership coach.

The chief "timer" may not understand your scientifically based reasons for taking a small break every hour and a half of work. Well, then you have to save yourself with mimicry.

You studied mimicry in biology at school. This is the ability of animals to change to blend in with their environment and not be noticed by their enemies. And so do you.

Stay at your desk, but switch.

Take up something that's different from your main job and gives you extra energy, advises Laura Vanderkam, time management expert. For example, do a pleasant office task - call a colleague or partner you like, read an interesting document that does not require a lot of concentration, check your mail. Switching will allow you to refocus later.

Your boss is a "stopwatch", but you have a responsibility to yourself first. And it is to take breaks according to your individual productivity abilities, so that you can perform your duties as well as possible.

Your career depends on it. And the better you organize yourself, the more likely you are to get away from that boss and go work with someone for whom there are more meaningful indicators of employee quality than splitting a second of work time.

--- When he is not a dry pedant, but wants awe

The boss who walks around the office checking to see if anyone has left their desk at the wrong time may be a pedant who fanatically sticks to the rules, but is more likely a different, more unpleasant type.

The "stopwatch" type among managers is less and less common. Most are focused on the bottom line that each of their subordinates achieves, rather than controlling every second of their time. They know very well that an employee can sit at his desk and look overworked, but not actually work.

The boss may pretend to be a "stopwatch" for a completely different reason - to inspire awe in his subordinates. They need to know that he is watching and controlling them constantly.

Therefore they should not indulge in anything unlawful, for he sees and will punish them. They should not even be 5 minutes late or leave 5 minutes early without asking his permission.

Unlike the pedant, who sincerely believes that the system rests on ironclad adherence to the rules, the other type of boss wants to use the rules to derive personal power.

From the employee Filipov, who asks him to leave half an hour earlier today because of a meeting with his parents, he receives pleasure and confirmation of his high position. He can't go anywhere just by telling his colleagues. You should definitely ask him "Do you allow?". He needs to know who's in charge here.

Career development experts advise against experimenting with such a boss. Memorize your job description and any other corporate documents you need to follow. And closely follow them, letter by letter. But never forget to show respect to your boss. No matter how good of a professional you are, no matter how successful you are, you'll be a thorn in his side if you don't show awe by asking him for permission to deviate from working hours.

Think of him as the lady in first grade. You can't get up in the middle of class and go out, no matter how pissed off you are. You have to raise your hand and say "Please ma'am may I come out".

Do not make any attempt to negotiate flexible working hours, home office, ie. work from home, etc. This man hates them because the live observation of his subordinates 8 hours 5 days a week, their fear of doing something wrong, feeds his self-esteem.

You should try to get away from such a boss quickly. But until you have succeeded, follow its rules and be a "stopwatch" employee who splits the second into two.

Well, also find ways to mime while sitting at your desk, of course.