You’ve been in your role for a few months, you’re doing solid work, and you genuinely like what you do. But somewhere along the way, your relationship with your boss starts to feel like a one-way street. You’re constantly guessing what they want, adjusting your whole approach based on their mood, and somehow still feeling invisible. Sound familiar?
Here’s the thing — no one really teaches you how to manage up. You’re told to work hard, deliver results, and “build relationships.” But nobody hands you the manual for navigating the dynamic with the person who controls your growth, your visibility, and sometimes your sanity.
Loss of sanity is not fun I experienced that 1st hand when I had a manager who micromanaged the entire team. For months, everyone kept quiet, and after I while I couldn’t take it. I went to him and shared my feedback mentioning it wasn’t just me, and you know what things got better. Because of this, I became more open to giving him feedback, and the team continued to get better as a result.
Managing up isn’t about being a yes-person or playing politics. It’s about being intentional with one of the most important professional relationships you have. Today, I want to share three ways to do it without losing who you are in the process. Let’s get into it.
1: Learn Their Language
Every manager has a preference for how they like to receive information — and if you’re not matching it, you’re making their job harder without realizing it. Some bosses want the full picture before they make a decision. Others want the bottom line in two sentences and the details only if they ask. Some need everything in writing. Others process better in conversation.
Think of it like adjusting the radio frequency. You might be broadcasting on FM 101.5, but your boss is only tuned in to FM 94.7. The signal’s going out — they’re just not picking it up.
Have you ever sent a detailed email recap of a project only to have your boss respond with “Can we just jump on a call?” That’s not them being difficult. That’s the frequency mismatch.
The fix is simple: pay attention early. Does your boss forward your emails without responding, then talk through everything verbally? Lean into verbal check-ins. Do they come to meetings with notes already written? Send a short summary before. Once you figure out their rhythm, adapt to it — not to lose yourself, but to make sure your work actually lands. That’s not performing; that’s being effective.
2: Make Your Work Visible
Doing great work in silence is like cooking an incredible meal and leaving it in the back of the fridge. It doesn’t matter how good it is if no one sees it.
Early in your career, it’s easy to assume that if you put your head down and deliver, the right people will notice and reward you for it. That’s the school model — do the assignment, get the grade. Corporate doesn’t work like that. Your boss is juggling their own priorities, managing multiple people, and reporting up to their own boss. They are not tracking your wins in real time.
Once a peer of mine was having difficulties with a manager saying they weren’t delivering against our project. This wasn’t true, so they came to me for advice. What was happening is that manager needed everything in writing. If it was written down, then it wasn’t getting done in his mind. I shared that with him and then recommended that he send out a weekly update. He started doing that and immediately the perception of him shifted. His work was seen as more impactful with just a simple change.
If your manager is like this, then build a simple habit: at the end of each week, send your boss a two-to-three sentence update on what you accomplished and what’s next. Call it a “weekly pulse” or just a quick Friday email. It keeps you top of mind, gives your boss language to advocate for you in rooms you’re not in, and — this is the part most people miss — it creates a paper trail of your growth that becomes incredibly valuable at review time. You’re not bragging; you’re informing. There’s a difference.
What would it feel like to walk into your next review knowing your manager has been watching your momentum all year instead of trying to piece it together in the last two weeks?
3: Name What You Need
This one makes a lot of early-career professionals uncomfortable, and honestly, I get it. Telling your boss what kind of support or feedback you need can feel presumptuous — like you’re the new person trying to run things. But staying silent and hoping they figure it out is how you end up frustrated, underutilized, and checked out.
Think about a GPS. It doesn’t just start driving — it needs a destination. Your boss is trying to guide your development, but without input from you, they’re navigating blind. They’ll default to what worked for someone else, which may have nothing to do with how you actually grow.
Being direct about your needs isn’t demanding — it’s professional self-awareness. At your next one-on-one, try something like: “I wanted to share that I tend to learn best when I get feedback in the moment rather than waiting for a review — is that something we can build into our check-ins?” Or: “I’m working toward growing my skills in X — are there projects coming up where I could contribute there?” These aren’t big asks. They’re the kind of clarity that makes you easier to develop and harder to overlook.
Only you know what you need to do your best work. Own that.
Wrap-Up
Managing up is a skill, and like any skill, it gets better the more intentionally you practice it. When you learn your boss’s communication style and adapt to it, your work lands more effectively. When you make your contributions visible on a consistent basis, you stop relying on luck to be recognized. And when you clearly name what you need, you take an active role in your own development instead of waiting for someone else to figure it out for you.
Your career isn’t going to manage itself. The people who grow fastest aren’t just talented — they’re intentional about every relationship that shapes their trajectory, starting with the one right above them.
Let me know what resonates, and feel free to share this with someone who needs to hear it.
If you’re looking for more advice that can help you with your career, feel free to check out other blog posts or even sign up for a mentorship session. We would love to help you become the high performer you’ve always wanted to be and to achieve your career goals.
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