How to Find Out If Your Future Boss is a Jerk

How to Find Out If Your Future Boss is a JerkHow to Find Out If Your Future Boss is a JerkHow to Find Out If Your Future Boss is a JerkBy now youre probably well aware that employers will Google you, check your online profiles, and in many cases, run a criminal background check, a credit check, and ask you to take a drug test before they hire you. (They might as well give you a colonoscopy while theyre at it.) A badeanstalt hire costs a company big bucks, so theyd be foolish leid to use all the information available. The same logic applies to you as a job candidate. Due diligence about your potential employers can reduce the chance that youll unwittingly sign on with a first-class ass of a boss.We hate to think it could happen to us, but bullying, discrimination, hostility, sexual intimidation, threats, and retaliation are facts of life in some workplaces. If youre serious about a particular employer, find out all you can about your would-be boss. Search Google, LinkedIn, Facebook, T witter, blogs, and sites like eBossWatch, which is aimed at helping job candidates find the truth about prospective employers. (Heres their list of the Worst Bosses of 2009.)In a post about this topic on the blog One Day One Job, writer Willy Franzen provided a helpful list of who and what you should be looking for when researching an employerPeople You Should ResearchThe companyTheir executive teamYour interviewer(s)Potential co-workersAny employees at the companyPeople at competing companiesThings You Should Look ForPersonal commentaryProfessional commentarySocial network profilesPhotosCustomer rantsEmployee rantsThe newsPrevious employment historyCompany financial conditionsQuotes in interviewsThe sad truth is, desperation often leads you to ignore your gut feelings and red flags about a prospective employer. When youre running out of money, you think you can tolerate anything as long as theres a paycheck at the end of the week. So, you accept the job despite your misgivings, and almost immediately you realize your boss is a jerk. But once youre hired, you get all sorts of pressure from all sorts of people (yourself included) to stick it out, put up with it for now, and make the best of a bad situation. Bad idea. The stress of working for an unstable, unpredictable, volatile boss whos a bully, a bigot, a harasser, or just a micromanaging nut job can permeate your life. It affects your confidence, your job performance, your physical and mental health, and your personal relationships. Its far easier to avoid the quicksand than to extricate yourself once youre in it up to your elbows.