Episode
What to Do When Your Boss Is a Bully
- Published
- Aug 4, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 582
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Summary
What do you do when your boss is a bully? Emily Gregory, a co-author of Crucial Conversations and a Crucial Learning speaker and consultant, responds to a reader who has this very problem. Emily takes this scenario and uses it to highlight the reality of this situation in many workplaces, and what you can do to navigate workplace bullying. She breaks down the difference between observation and judgment: what is actually happening with this person vs what our perception of them is. Emily lays out two concrete paths forward and shows how to prepare for that conversation with good intent and fact-based language instead of accusation. Her advice shows that you can do more than just "leave" or " deal with it." Remember, facing a hard situation is the only thing that makes change possible. Chapters [Start] The Letter: A reader describes a manager whose outbursts and accusatory emails have become normalized, with real health effects on the team. 01:32 Stories vs. Facts: How to unpack our judgment of someone by analyzing the language we use to describe them. 03:33 Two Ways Forward: Looking at two approaches forward when it comes to dealing with a workplace bully. 04:52 Preparing for the Conversation: Three principles to help you prepare for the difficult, but crucial, conversation with a bully. 07:32 A Sample Conversation: An example of a rehearsed conversation showing how to bring up this issue with honesty and specificity. Links and Resources Crucial Learning Crucial Accountability: Proven Skills to Build Trust, Address Disappointment, and Get Results Crucial Conversations ® for Accountability (course) Crucial Learning | What to Do When Your Boss Is a Bully Learn more about Emily Gregory here. The Crucial Skills Podcast is brought to you by the authors and experts at Crucial…