Introduction
If you feel that your boss hates you, it could be a figment of your imagination. People sometimes feel intimidated by authority, especially when they are just 
starting their first job or changing to a new job. But what if it is really true and you want to find out for sure?
Not easy to find out
This is not always easy. If he doesn’t treat you like everyone else, you’re not likely to be his favorite employee, but does it mean that he hates you? So trust your senses and look for further signs that your boss does hate you. Here are some symptoms that can really show that your boss hates you.
I will also give you possible solutions and will conclude with my number 1 recommendation, starting your own business and making money on the side.
1. He makes decisions without you being in the know
When the boss does not involve you in the decision-making process related to your job, the reason may be that your boss does not trust your opinion. Mind you, if this only happened once, this could be an omission on his part. However, if this is a repeating pattern, then watch out.
2. He doesn’t keep eye contact with you
If the boss wants to tell you something bad, he may not have long eye contact
with you. He will fear that you will be able to determine the anger in his eyes so he chooses the path of least resistance. He might be studying a document in front of him or go and pour some coffee for himself as a distraction (but keeps talking). A sure sign something is amiss.
3. He doesn’t smile at you at all
I am not talking about a random bad day or mood but over a longer period of time. If your boss makes a deliberate attempt not to smile at you, then something is badly wrong.
4. He is avoiding meeting you
If you notice your boss walking down the stairs just as you wait for the elevator, and he does this on a regular basis, this can be a serious sign that he is avoiding you. If your boss doesn’t greet you when you come to work and doesn’t say goodbye to you when you leave, it can prove he doesn’t like you. True, bosses usually have a busy schedule and they might be under pressure a lot, but if this often happens, there could be something wrong.
5. He is very curt with you
If you ask, “How are you?” And your boss always responds “OK” or “Good”, and if his email always contains only brief comments on the matter and never starts with a friendly welcome, it could mean he does not like you very much. It also might be in the body language. Whether you see subtle rolling eyes, permanent crossing arms across his chest, body language will always show the true attitude of your boss to you.
6. He avoids having personal conversations
If your boss doesn’t like you, he tends to try to limit personal conversations between the two of you. Noticing a shift to electronic communication can be a sign as well. In these circumstances, his office door might always be closed for you.
7. He tends not to agree with you
Have you noticed that your boss rejects your every suggestion and mostly does not agree with whatever you say? At the same time, you also notice that he doesn’t do the same thing to others? Well, that’s a significant sign that he might secretly hate you.
8. He speaks to others differently
If you notice that your boss is having a conversation with other employees 
about their children or hobbies, but he never raises such topics in a conversation with you, he may simply not be interested in hearing about your personal life. Friendly jokes with his staff – this is a sign that you are part of the team. So if your boss never feels comfortable enough to include you in inside jokes, then you’re unlikely to receive their and his respect.
If your boss seems disinterested, when you talk to him, and breaks down quickly as your conversation lengthens, it may be a sign that he doesn’t like you.
9. He gives your project to someone else
Monday morning you come to work and find that a big project that you had been working on all Friday has been handed to another employee. Volatile bosses often redistribute projects, despite doing more harm than good. But if you see that it happens often, and only with you, then it can be a negative move by the boss, against you.
10. He never gives you feedback on your work
A boss, who wants to help you grow, will always tell you their opinion on your 
work done. It is absolutely mandatory in maintaining a good working atmosphere. But the absence of his feedback, both positive and negative, shows complete indifference to the results of your efforts and your potential for growth in the company.
Some bosses just deal with the people however they want. But if your boss really dislikes you, then he will feel a real aversion to acknowledging your accomplishments.
11. He micro-manages you
The boss can go on to micro-manage you for a variety of reasons: a lack of confidence in your actions or the desire to gain control at all levels. But it could also mean he doesn’t trust you. In some cases, it may even go beyond the limit allowed when your boss begins to control each step in detail so that it looks like a pursuit. I have described in detail what you can do about micro-management in a previous article, which can be accessed by clicking here.
12. He reprimands or humiliates you in public
Open criticism of your efforts and ideas at the meeting – a sign of 
disrespect. Your boss might just give you the dirty jobs, far below your level of competence and experience. If your boss really lowers himself to this public humiliation, it means he probably hates you. In all probability it means he doesn’t trust you, doesn’t believe in your ability, and maybe even actively wants you to look for a new job.
Have you been in one or more of these situations? Please share your experiences in the comment box below.
So, what to do about it?
And I mean something should be done about each of these giveaways whenever they occur. No need to let them fester. Looking at signs number 1-8, although really quite annoying, the best way is to confront your boss. Ask for an interview, prepare yourself, set an agenda and be businesslike about it. The last thing you want to do is get angry or lose your temper.
What do you want?
Think about the outcome you want, steer the direction of the discussion in that way, but be prepared for non-responsiveness as well. I grant you that many times, a misunderstanding is a basis for any animosity and you sure want that out of the way.
Then if you can live with the outcome, fully accept it and move on. If you cannot, then tell your boss you will see other people (his boss, HR or a neutral outside consultant). Be aware that this road can be tricky and lead to your ultimate dismissal or quitting.
What to do about serious trouble?
If you are in the unfortunate situations as described under points 9-12, take away your work, give no feedback, micro-manages you and humiliate you, then this is a whole different ball game. Although a good conversation as above should always be attempted in order to smooth the path or find misunderstandings, it seems to me that things have already gone too far. Especially, since you seem to be the only victim here. This very much points to divide and conquer tactics from your boss and I have written down what can be done in this case here.
Human Resources
I have seen people getting into contact with HR, higher management and outside sources, even going to court, but the results, even if you would win, are not in favor of the employee. The working relationships would in all probability be disturbed to such an extent that reconciliation will not be possible anymore. In other words, you might as well look at other avenues, such as finding another job or always having, during a job, a backup option. My recommendation number 1 is this fallback opportunity: becoming your own boss!
Recommendation # 1
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You can do this!
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I have worked for many bosses in my career,and most of them,were pretty good, but one or two were not great,however I tried to get along with all of them.
One of the times, when I think of it,was after I had worked at this company for five years,there were rumblings that because of the economic situation,that they were going to downsize the staff,there were a series of meetings,to outline the situation,but strangely I was never told of when, they were to be held,and of course I was absent,now I see it was a deliberate ploy on the part of management,and then without warning I was fired with a months pay in lieu of notice.
However, on applying for another post, the interviewers wanted a reference, from my previous employer,I said they wouldn’t give me a good one,but when they phoned up, I was given a glowing reference, the upshot of it was, I got a better job in a matter of days, and financially I was better off than before.
When I was getting shunted out,of the old company,many of the signs were there if I had known what to watch for,!/ he avoided meeting me,I got notes of what was needed doing. 2/ I started not getting feedback on the work that I was doing. 3/I noticed that one person who didn’t like me was going round with a very pleased look when he looked at me,and the boss got him to pass on messages to me.
When I was serving my apprenticeship, I had a disagreement with a sub manager, over arrangements for transport at night school,I was not satisfied, and went over his head to one of the senior managers, who when he heard the facts reversed the other’s decision,.later in the day the sub manager, came and tore me off a strip, for going over his head,and intimated that when I finished, my apprenticeship there would never be a job, with the company for me, and so it was, the day I finished my apprenticeship I was given notice.Again God was good to me and I got a job at a University on the permanent staff where I stayed for seven years,with a great boss.
Thank you for two prime examples of what I had described in my article. You had to go through them in order to be at a better place at University.
This post have made my morning already. There are so many instances where ones boss just develop some sort of hatred for you for no just reason. Sometimes its usually because they are familiar with seeing you already because I have heard of cases where you are doing very well at work but still you boss may hate you. At such moments, for me the best option is to resign from the job. Like mentioned in this post going to court may end in your favor but after that you’ll go back to work with that same person. A bad move I’ll call it.
I love the suggestion given about going into affiliate marketing, its a really cool of making money without the interference of anyone. Thanks for sharing such wonderful post
If nothing else would help, you still owe it to yourself not to stay in a bad situation that ultimately could be detrimental to your health. This is the last thing you want. Better to keep something on the back-burner, such as giving affiliate marketing a big try, which can already be started whilst you are still working.
Oh this is a very good here. I like how you have put this ways to tell into two segments. A friend of mine thinks her boss might hate her. She called me quite recently for advice on what to do. I’m not sure she might be right about her boss hating her. It’s possible that she just hates authority because she never really says what her boss does except him nagging. I could really work with what you have written here. Thank you. I’d really love it if you could write about what steps to take if you’re being wooed by your boss in a inappropriate manner.
Now, after reading this article, you might be able to help your friend by pointing her to this website page. The first thing to be done, after recognizing the signs, try and straighten things out with your boss in a one on one meeting.
Great article you have written here and I must say you are right. When the reasons are getting obvious that the boss hates one, the best approach is to demand for an audience so it could be trashed out as adults would do but if that doesn’t work out, then it is always an advisable way to get rid of the work. Some boss can be brutal in showing their emotions. Getting humiliated in profit by someone who you work just to keep him thriving is too much of an insult for me to take and if I were ever in such situation, I would demand my self respect or kindly walk away.
Thankfully, there are more than enough ways to get started with working as an entrepreneur, I will give one a go and see how things turn out.
Tracy
Fully agreed, thanks for your contribution. And yes, becoming ones own boss is a perfect way out of these unfortunate work place situations.
This is one very serious important topic I must confess. I was a victim of my boss’s disgust. After 5 years of unending personal success and achievement, I was beginning to fall on the black list of the branch manager at work. Severally he gave my job to someone else and when I ask what the reason what, he would say he didn’t need my “expertise”. It got to a point I got tired of the entire show and submitted my retirement letter, and I was introduced to wealthy affiliate which I’m doing well in right now.
Sorry that this happened to you, but rest assured, you are not the only one. If I read correctly you did well for the boss, but still your boss changed his attitude towards you? In this case it should have been him to invite you for a good meeting to find out if something changed in your situation. The fact that he did not, seems quite strange to me. After all, you want the good ones to remain. Good luck with your affiliate marketing.
This article is spot on and I can attest to this because most the points listed above are the reasons I quit my former job to become an entrepreneur. It is very easy to pinpoint the hatred in my ex-boss towards me. He tries at evey opportunity to raise his voice at me and also every board meeting always ends with my humiliation. When I couldn’t take it no more, I realised my self worth and decided to quit. Though he was pretending to be pained when I submitted the resignation letter but it was evident all over him, how delighted he was to have gotten rid of me.
That is exactly the thing here. When anybody experiences this kind of abuse and it happen repeatedly, there certainly is an underlying reason. It is up to you to find out what is wrong, before you sit there too long and your health suffers. You did the right thing.
I feel that this is divided into two different parts. The first is from 1-8. At this point the boss is doing things not to show that he hates his employee but from 9-12, he doesn’t care anymore. Pardon my use of he, it could be a she too as there are some female bosses too out there. I have had this feeling before and I didn’t let it get to the second stage before I quit. We spoke about it like normal people, I made sure he kept eye contact with me and there I found the dislike I had a hunch about. In the end, I quit and that was that. You have here a good solution too. Overall, great one!
Yes, you always have to think for yourself if you are imagining things are if they are real. Agreed, bosses are male and female. If you are sure that your boss did not like you, then you have made the right decision.
Well half of the symptomps above are exactly what I’ve been experiencing since I’m getting this job. I just don’t understand why my indirect boss feels so insecure with my existence, eventhough he was the one who decided to hire me in the first place. I plan to quit and get a new job, but your recommendation to be an affiliate marketer does make me curious. I’ll check it. Thanks
That is your good right, but as I pointed out, have a good discussion with your boss first. It might help you finding out, if your feelings are right or that there might be a possible misunderstanding. Affiliate marketing is the way to go nowadays. There are about 90 million people just wanting to go to the internet in the next 3 years.
Interesting opinion piece. I don’t really agree with you though. Some people don’t make eye contact with anyone through shyness/social anxiety. Sometimes decisions have to be made without everyone being told about them. People don’t smile because they’re having trouble at home or are worried about things that are nothing to do with you at all. Some people don’t think personal conversations are appropriate for the workplace.
I think it’s more important to not take any of it personally except in extreme circumstances, to assume that your boss is just having a bad day, or a long series of bad days, and confrontation is almost never the answer. The exception to that might be if your boss makes comments which are clearly racist, sexist or other kinds of discrimination. Better still, if you’re unhappy with your boss, find another job, or better still, start working for yourself.
Yes, some people are shy, but I have yet to meet the first shy boss and this is what we are talking about here. I agree that bosses can have a bad day, but that is why I have talked of things happening repeatedly or for a longer time. I have tried to warn about the patterns that sometimes exist, the warning signs that should not be discarded. You do not have to take things personal, but you can still be alert to what is happening around you. I am having a hard way, when a boss would take me off a job without reasons. I would have a hard time when I am humiliated in front of everybody else. You might not have a problem when your boss micro-manages you, but I for one sure have. Ok, you can run every time you are unhappy, but you cannot run forever. There is so much more you can do!