An Extraordinary Man
By now, friends and family are tired of hearing about hearing how great my boss is, so I am glad to
have found this outlet for more bragging about my wonderful employer. He's almost too good to be
believed. But I'll let you be the judge:
Let me first explain that I work as an assistant to an architect. He is the sole practitioner
of a very successful if small four-person office, consisting of him, me, a drafter, and a part-time
college student. People in the industry (construction, government) familiar with our production are
amazed when they find out John is the only architect in the office. Through his own tireless work,
fastidiousness and talent, he has propelled this business through market slumps and downtimes without
a scratch.
Before we, his employees, came along, he did everything himself, so unlike some other bosses I have
had who didn't know how to use the fax machine, he is quite capable of doing every menial task by
himself (and often does). He trusts us to do our jobs without unnecessary supervision and he doesn't
play favorites. Although he is a little unorthodox (he often refuses to speak until after noon), we
have all come to understand his reticence. (Plus, when he does speak, he is pretty hilarious.) We know
that he expresses his feelings through actions, not through a lot of disingenuous "management" speak and
meaningless cheerleading. For instance, I once made the mistake of mentioning that a client was slightly
disrespectful when speaking to me, and he let the guy have it.
These are some of the reasons I always considered him the best boss I ever had. But the true depth of
his kindness and generosity was revealed when I had my first child four months ago. Having an employee
out on maternity leave is a hardship for any business, but especially difficult for a four-person office
like ours. He gladly ponied up eight weeks of fully paid leave for me, and I am sure had I asked for
more, I would have received it. He had the office throw me an extravagant shower and bought me a very
expensive gift. When my daughter was born, I received flowers in the hospital and then at home, and my
daughter and I get full health insurance coverage through the company. Our billings were down by about
40%, since he had to pick up my slack, but he didn't mention it.
I had a lot of anxiety about childcare upon my return; I had always imagined that I would be a
stay-at-home mom. But after talking to the Angel Boss (as I have come to refer to him), he agreed
to let me work what amounts to a 25-hour week at the same rate of pay so I can care for my daughter.
This man has made such a difference in my life, I just want the world to know what a decent human
being and wonderful employer he is. I could continue on with specific anecdotes of his magnanimous
ways, but suffice it to say that he is one classy dude all around, and I am so grateful for the
opportunity to have worked for such an extraordinary man.
Do you have a good boss? Have you ever had one? Would you like to earn $10? If you'd like to tell the world about your experience, e-mail us at thelab@busreslab.com. If we like the story, we'll print it here on these pages. If we print it, we'll pay you ten dollars. Please include your name and address for the purposes of mailing a check if we use your story . . . rest assured that we won't include either in the web site.
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