Ivymike, you talk sense.
"Don't let yourself believe that your boss actually has any idea how well you're doing...."
All too often the converse is true especially if you allow others the opportunity to shoot you down.
Now let's see....
So, Sahinoz,
I would say your instincts are fine; you do need more interaction your boss.
The two times you saw him was the minimum essential from his perspective.
He has other priorities.
"I was able to submit it succesfully."
Your opinion? Did your boss enthuse? Did he just glance at the summary and put it down somewhere to "read later" or did you just internally mail it to him and are operating on the "no news is good news" principal?
Never assume.
Never assume that because you did well that it is perceived that way.
Never assume that good work will bring its rewards.
No news isn't good news, it's indifference.
If in doubt, ask. If you don't ask, you don't get.
Now consider: two equivalent bits of kit from different manufacturers and one works well and the other doesn't. Everyone will be focussed on the piece of kit that isn't working.
They will become involved with it to a far greater degree.
The funny thing is that when something goes wrong and the problem is dealt with well by the manufacturer, it is that that is remembered and that is the piece of kit they will choose again.
It is true of people as well; how well some one else performs in difficult situations can outweigh all the good work by you not getting into bad situations.
BUT: it is primarily about perception.
Talented musicians can lack gigs while untalented people get the big bucks... the difference? good PR people and good managers.
Sports stars have managers and PR people too.
Engineers don't.
It isn't that they don't need this but that they have to do it for themselves.
Good PR and self promotion outways skill and ability.
It's how poor performers get top jobs; (become managers?) they know that advancement is a matter of self promotion.
It is not enough to do well but to be seen to be doing well.
You, just like any other commodity, require good PR to be a success.
The key is communication.
Those guys that are always in with the boss are providing the boss with a comfort zone; he is able to keep "his finger on the pulse"
It is his early warning system.
They never surprise him with bad news.
He can far more easily detect when things are about to hit the fan and move the fan when he has this sort of dialogue. How many foul-ups never happen because of this interaction?
Poor communication is the bane of industry.
It isn't about reports and management dictats, what works is frequent informal interactions that help everyone know what the state of play is.
Register your success:
You are a new player and you may need to take the initiative.
You probably got a project that isn't life or death critical. Your completing the project isn't necessarily going to ring bells.
You need your success and your good work to register in his mind with equal or better force than failures.
You don't do this by saying "Hey, ain't I great!" You do it by involving him in your work.
Whether you think you need it or not, you can and probably should, make a point of informally asking his advice, or keeping him up to speed on where you are. If you don't want to ask advice, make proposals, the outcome is the same: give him the opportunity and he will respond.
Otherwise, you will always get the projects that "don't really matter that much" and you can be as successful as you like while your career goes no where.
However well you work, you can be sure that when you do foul up, you will get to see the boss and this will be a memorable event, and one that will outweigh all the successes..... unless those successes have registered.
Don't just rely on your reports.
A report has an executive summary.
If your executive summary is all
"targets met" and
"ticked that box", the detail won't be read.
The activity won't register.
Your boss will make more time for the ones that show problems or need more guidance.
That's were he has to focus his attention. Those are the ones that will register.
{b]Avoid Surprises [/b]
Don't wait till you have finished a project before you see him, this suspence is probably killing him.
Bosses deosn't like surprises; especially if it's too late to do anythig about it.
Your report should be a formal record of what he already knows.
He will know just what it will contain if there is informal dialogue and a continuous low level comforatble awareness is probably better than surprises anyday.
An eleventh hour failure isn't what he wants, he wants an early warning that he can respond to. You not talking to him might be making him a bit nervous. You being new he may be sitting back a bit to see how you do and if you will take the initiative.
Know it all already?
Don't forget that in every task there are several ways to do it (parapharsing Cpt. Queeg)
[ul][li] the "right" way: the way they taught you?[/li]
[li] the wrong way....[/li]
[li] his way..[/li]
...and guess which way he likes.
Better yet, don't guess, ask.
Nobody, least of all bosses, minds people who ask:for advice or for input; for opinion or guidance.
They are more likley to be worried about people who don't ask or who don't appear to need it.
They want to be involved and kept informed.
What works would appear to be informal dialogue. If the boss didn't want/encourage this it wouldn't be happening.
He needs to know what makes you tick. He doesn't need to think that you don't need to learn from anyone... disaster looms there.
What I have learned (the hard way) is that outstanding success can meet with abject failure if only you know how good you are and how well you have done.
Oh, and low profile man makes a great scapegoat and gets on the downsize lists with ease.
Life isn't fair, it's what you make of it.
JMW
