There are qualities good employers posses: brilliant, smart, and energetic. But not all of them can be considered great bosses and at least once in our life we will meet a leader who is an arrogant, inconsiderate and egoistical person. This is a dilemma that most workers face these days: how to work well with a leader that’s too hard to handle.

“Being 99% correct on this job is not enough; you must be 100% correct all the time.” This line is just an example of a hard to please employer. Each of us must learn how to cope with the demands of an arrogant boss, yet keep our emotions and work ethics intact. Below are some lines you’ll often hear from a leader that tends to be a perfectionist:

“What the hell are you doing?! That’s wrong!”
Expect to be corrected; it is guaranteed to happen and sometimes with startling frequency. There is an old saying that goes, “we show others how we wish to be treated ourselves.” Politely ask your boss how things need to get done and express that you appreciate hearing new ideas. That way, the boss will feel guilty for treating you bad because you have presented yourself as a courteous, and affable person. Think of the situation as a new learning experience and opportunity for self improvement.

“Don’t ask me stupid questions! You must know the answer already!”
Patience is needed to call a “brilliant” boss’s attention, and for him take your work seriously. A perspicacious employee will usually alter plans and work flow to attempt to satisfy this kind of boss. The trick is to ask intelligent and well thought out questions without overwhelming or undermining. Trivial questions will certainly attract ire.

“I can do this quickly, but you’re so slow!”
Try to get the job done as quickly as possible while learning from the inside out. Most bosses boast on how quickly and efficiently they do the work you have been assigned. Learn on how to be effective: Study to improve your performance and output. If you’re good at what you do, the arrogant boss will have fewer reasons to be picky and point out problems.

“You’re good but as long as I’m here, you are just second best see…”
Try your best to give positive comments on your boss’s standards; after all they are the boss’s rules. Try to implement those rules that seem to be most effective first. Tell the boss sincerely that you are learning from his/her expertise and how grateful you are. But remember this: Improving standards at work is one thing and blatant interference and control from the boss is another.

If you have ever seen the film, “The Devil wears Prada” you may have been horrified, and perhaps a bit amused by the boss in this film, Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), and the way she expected perfection from all her employees. One thing that I took from this film was the revelation of the boss’s character in the denouement of the story. She actually turned out to be quite sympathetic when her exhausted and frustrated protégé, Andie, finally decided to quit. Arrogant and perfectionist bosses often have an annoying habit of testing their newbies to the most extreme of limits. They want to see what you are made of and may actually be assisting employee development in a way that assumes to bring out the very best qualities in people who work for them. They challenge you to strive for excellence which is one way of promoting improvements in the workplace. These improvements can actually serve as a reward for anyone who can last the distance in the job. Your skills and work ethic are guaranteed to be sharpened to an impressive standard. If all else fails with regards to dealing with an arrogant/perfectionist boss, then seriously consider changing to another job. If you do indeed end up handing in your resignation, you won’t have to be concerned about a perfect delivery in announcing this to your boss.