Here is a brief excerpt from an article by Gary Bradt, featured by LinkedIn Pulse. To read the complete article, check out others, and sign up to receive email alerts, please click here.

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If you’re the boss it’s best not to frustrate your people too often.

But if you are one of the four types of bosses below, rest assured you probably do.

[Here’ the first of the four.]

The Moving Target Boss: “I’ll know it when I see it. And that’s not it.”

This boss will drive you crazy.

o Their expectations are vague
o Or their expectations shift
o Or their expectations are vague and then they shift

Usually, these bosses aren’t trying to be difficult. Most are intuitive and maybe introverted thinkers. They struggle to articulate what they want because they aren’t sure what they want. Until they see it. Or don’t.

How to manage The Moving Target Boss:

o When beginning a project or task ask a lot of questions up front
o Touch base frequently along the way
o Don’t wait until the end of the project to fill them in on your thinking. Unless you really enjoy being disappointed.

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The other three types are The Ask But Don’t Listen Boss, The “I’ll Get Back To You” (But They Never Do) Boss, and The Indecisive Boss. Bradt offers practical suggestions about how to manage each.

I presume to add another that has always worked well for me: Pin down in writing who will do what by when. Then ask: “Have I got this right?”

Request feedback (if any) and then say this:

“Got it right here. Written down. Thank you.”

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Gary Bradt is a keynote speaker on change and leadership. You can check out videos and info here.

His latest book is The Ring in the Rubble: Dig Through Change to Find Your Next Golden Opportunity (2007), published by McGraw-Hill.

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Here is a direct link to the complete article.