How I Handled my Horrible Boss

I quit my 9–5 job in December 2021. Not because I got a better offer. Or because I'm ready to dive into the entrepreneurial space. But because I had a horrible boss.

The first time I met her, my boss, I was enthralled. She was one of the most enchanting women I have ever met. You can't think of elegance without remembering my boss.

I started work in the organisation, excited. Having made her my mentor in my mind, I made a mental note to learn a lot from her.

The first two weeks were like testing the waters. I was still under training, so she treated me nicely. The toxicity started just three weeks into the job.

One of my colleagues was narrating her huge dose of mistreatment that freaky Friday. Having heard a lot of these complaints before then, this one was too true to be taken as some employees' nags.

Then that evening, boom, I got my share of the national cake.

It happened that someone had used the toilet without flushing it, but somehow, my dear boss concluded, without prior asking, that it was me. Wow.

When I tried explaining, she shut me up and demanded that I take the necessary step, which was going to flush a poo I didn't poop. Mind you, the WC is bad, I will have to climb down with a bucket to fetch water.

I never knew flushing someone else's poop was also in my job description.

I immediately labelled her as an 'annoying boss' until the second episode happened. It had been a wonderful working Wednesday until my boss decided that the dismissal time was too early to leave the office.

"Don't you have something else to do in the office, miss Somto?" She asked.

"I'm sorry? Isn't this longer a 9–5? Will you pay me for the extra hours?" I replied. (In my mind.)

I changed the label from 'annoying' to 'terrible'.

That tag changed from 'terrible' to 'horrible', the day she refused to grant me half day sick leave, just because I couldn't provide anyone to fill in for me.

"What if I faint the next day ma?" I asked her in sheer furiosity.

She just stared blankly at me. What answer could she possibly give?

That was the day I made a new mental note. To QUIT.

And in all honesty, that's the way to handle a horrible boss. Protect your mental health and leave that toxic space.

You might need the money to pay bills, but what if you lose your sanity in the process? Get depressed? Start having suicidal thoughts? Develop a mental issue?

A mistake I made in all these catastrophes? I told her 3 months before my quitting plans.

Why? I had pitied her start-up organization, alerted her, so she could start searching for a new employee beforehand.

The result of this mistake? More antagonization.

It was as if her hatred for me heightened. I started receiving attacks, bounce attacks, counter-attacks and double attacks.

It got so bad that I had to pray each morning for the Holy Spirit to help me divert her attention from me.

I came out from that job maintaining sanity, with no financial stability because the pay was just 20k. Imagine? But my storytelling game and writing skills got sharper.

Right now, I'm flying in freedom in the freelancing space. Let me know if you need any writing services. I'm free.

Love and Light.