Your Boss Owes You Some Things
If you're not getting them, your opportunity to be successful is smaller.
Are you thinking of leaving your job? Have you left a job before? In both cases, is the reason your manager? Gallup says that's true of an astounding number of others, too.
Can we just leave every time we've had our fill of our manager? Sounds like an endless cycle. Not to mention, leaving a job and going through the dreaded job search and interview process (if we're so lucky as to get past the AI bots that never pass us off to a real human) sounds exhausting.
If your boss isn't getting you what you need to be successful, you need to manage your boss.
What you should expect
As an A-player, there are things you have every right to expect from your boss. Clear expectations. Timely feedback. Support when you need it. Trust in your judgment.
When reality falls short
Your boss is unclear. Feedback is inconsistent. You're micromanaged or abandoned. Politics get in the way. These aren't unique problems—they're patterns with solutions.
You have to manage your boss because they're also just trying to make their boss happy, so sometimes they forget the things they owe you as their employee. You also have to because if you don't get these things at work, you're debilitated, success is way harder to come by, and work just gets miserable.