How to Work with an Insecure Boss: The Harvard Business Review Guide

How to Work with an Insecure Boss - Power Positive Tactic
Who is an insecure Boss?
An insecure boss has the common feature of monitoring their staff anytime, anywhere. They always ask you for every move. They have trouble trusting your ideas and your projects.
According to research, people in positions of power tend to have insecure feelings.
They are under high pressure. They are afraid of being outdated because of incompetence or losing their positions of power.
How to deal with insecure managers?
Here are 5 great tactics.
Patient and calm down. To work well with insecure managers, you should calm down. Your peaceful energy can affect their actions.
Make a joint effort. Use “we” for all sentences. Example: We can achieve them together, not I can achieve.
Show them that you’re not a threat. We work for the company. We aim to hit the target and finish all projects before the deadline.
Have some compliments. Respect them as good managers but treat them as kind friends. Give positive feedback to your manager’s projects. Some compliments are genuine. Or it is simple to say “thank you” in a respectful manner.
Give them a sense of control. They love power. Keep your managers updated on projects that they care about. Always let them know about your working timing. Let them believe that they are important. Insecure managers always require that every decision needs their approval. They want you to refrain from interacting with other teams or senior leaders in an attempt to control the flow of information.
Besides, you should find out what might be causing their self-doubt. Then, avoid it.
Never retaliate, push back, confront or even report insecure managers to their boss.
Stop thinking they damage your career. Negative thoughts do not help.
Use positive questions such as “Could you please explain this project to me?”
Keep a pleasant tone. Don’t use a high tone in any discussions. Otherwise, the discussion will become an argument.
Exercise sympathy. Be sympathetic and give him some motivating words. Your kindness might help him change. And you might become a good mate to him one day when both of you understand each other.
After you try all tactics, you can’t change the situation. It’s not your responsibility. It would help if you found out how to set up boundaries. You should apply a power tip "The less interaction, the safer".
Power tip: This is my tip. The video does not mention it, but it is very important. By keeping a soft voice and a smiling face, you can lead your communication to your desired destination.