Interviewer: Who was your worst boss?
Mark: Well, I have had a pretty good relationship with all of my bosses. I can’t really say that any of them were terrible. But if I had to choose one, I would say my first boss was my worst boss.
Interviewer: Can you tell me why?
Mark: It was because he was so indecisive. When there was a disagreement between the staff about what to do, we needed him to make a decision. However, he didn’t want to make anyone angry, so he often avoided making these decisions.
Interviewer: I see. How did that affect the performance of the department?
Mark: It affected our performance greatly. We often fell behind schedule because he couldn’t make a decision and many times we did not have clear directions from him, so the quality of the projects fell.
Interviewer: That must have been frustrating.
Mark: It definitely was a little frustrating.
Patterns and Examples
My worst boss was ____________________. He/She ____________________.
- My worst boss was my first boss. He was terrible at communicating, and he often changed his mind at the last minute.
- My worst boss was my second boss. She did not have enough technical skills and often did not know how to solve basic problems.
I have never had a bad boss, but I always hate it when my boss ____________________.
- I have never had a bad boss, but I always hate it when my boss does not give clear directions.
- I have never had a bad boss, but I always hate it when my boss does not delegate the work evenly to staff members.
____________________ was my worst boss because he/she ____________________.
- My manager at the Italian restaurant where I worked for 3 years was my worst boss because he often got angry and yelled at employees.
- My first boss was my worst boss because she was so indecisive.
