{"id":3422,"date":"2020-04-07T15:01:46","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T15:01:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\/"},"modified":"2025-01-15T06:30:14","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T06:30:14","slug":"7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors","title":{"rendered":"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><em>Note: This post was originally published on <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.addgene.org\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\">Addgene blog<\/a> and has been republished here with permission.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Do you have a difficult supervisor, or do you have to work with difficult people? Each time I ask this question at my workshops, I get nods from nearly every participant.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Robert Bramson, author \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Coping-Difficult-People-Proven-Effective-Troublemakers\/dp\/0440202019\" style=\"color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Coping with Difficult People<\/a>,\u201d identified seven types of difficult people:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Hostile-aggressives, who are usually antagonistic and impolite<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Complainers, who spend most of their time moaning about their troubles,<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Silent or unresponsive clams, who seem to ignore you and your questions,<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Super-agreeable friendly types, who don\u2019t follow through on their promises,<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Wet-blanket negativist, who can bring down the morale of a group with their pessimism,<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Know-it all experts, who think their way is the only right way, and<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"font-size:11.0pt\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\"><span style=\"line-height:107%\"><span style=\"font-family:&quot;Calibri&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;\">Indecisives, who keep changing their minds and have trouble making decisions<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">In my work as a thesis coach for graduate students, I heard about supervisors\u00a0in all of the above categories. In addition, I also learned about two other kinds of difficult supervisors:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"tab-stops:list .5in\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Hands-off super busy types, who never have time to mentor you, and<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"margin: 0in 0in 8pt;\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"tab-stops:list .5in\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Micromanagers, who question every detail of your project and work hours.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">While specific strategies to deal with each of these personality types is beyond the scope of this article, there are a few principles that will help you resolve most conflicts, even with difficult people. If I had to use one word for to summarize these principles it would be \u201cassertiveness.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><strong><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">7 Strategies to become more assertive &amp; resolve conflicts<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>What Is assertiveness?\u00a0<\/b>An assertive person is able to communicate their ideas confidently while also considering the needs of other people. Some students and postdoctoral fellows are hesitant about expressing their ideas, especially if their supervisors are difficult people.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">The following seven strategies will help you to become more assertive and resolve disagreements with your supervisor, even if he or she is a difficult person:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>1)\u00a0Understand your supervisor\u2019s expectations<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Every supervisor has their\u00a0own management style. A hands-on supervisor might expect weekly or biweekly progress reports. However, a hands-off busy supervisor might get annoyed if you schedule meetings or send updates frequently. The easiest way to meet your supervisor\u2019s expectations is to ask upfront: \u201cHow frequently would you like me to check in with you?\u201d For a specific project you can ask when he or she would like an update, and whether he or she\u00a0would like a written report or to meet in person.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Regardless of your supervisor\u2019s management style, bring challenges to his or her attention as soon as you can. It is in your supervisor\u2019s interest that you succeed, and if you cannot resolve a problem on your own, reach out for help so you can get the support you need.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>2)\u00a0Prepare an agenda for every meeting<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Supervisors are busy and your work is just one of the hundred things on their minds. When you come to a\u00a0meeting with a clear agenda, you will immediately get your supervisor\u2019s attention so you can focus on the problems that need to be resolved. If there are any forms that need to be signed, or manuscripts that need to be reviewed, bring them to the meeting. This will make it easy for your supervisor to support you.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>3)\u00a0Explain the problem and leave your emotions out of the discussion<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Do not assume that your supervisor is familiar with the minute details of your work. Describe the problem by stating the facts and explain how it is interfering with your work. Avoid talking about your emotions, such as frustration or anger, because your discussion will get side-tracked, and you might create even more conflicts.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>4)\u00a0Define in advance how you would like the problem to be resolved<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">You know more about your work than your supervisor does. You can save yourself and your supervisor some time if you come to every meeting with one or more proposals to resolve your problem. Your supervisor will appreciate that you took the time to think of solutions, and will be more likely to view your proposals favorably.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>5)\u00a0Listen to your supervisor\u2019s viewpoint and brainstorm about mutually beneficial solutions<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Your supervisor might not agree with all of your ideas, but he or she probably has reasons for it. Do not take criticism personally or get defensive. Look at the problem from their viewpoint, and brainstorm about solutions that will meet both of your needs.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>6)\u00a0Put important agreements in writing<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">One of the most frequent sources of conflict is miscommunication. For example, you might misunderstand your supervisor\u2019s suggestions and take your project in the wrong direction. The best way to avoid miscommunication is to follow up after every meeting with an email that summarizes what you have agreed upon and your action items. This will give your supervisor a chance to review what you have discussed and add suggestions if needed.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\"><b>7)\u00a0Always follow through on your end of the deal<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">When you meet with your supervisor, prioritize your action item list and set some approximate timelines. Be sure that you keep your commitments, and if for some reason you are not able to, let your supervisor know as soon as possible. In order to build trust between you and your supervisor, you need to demonstrate that they can count on you to follow through on your commitments.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Assertiveness is a skill that will help you to resolve both personal and professional conflicts. At the workplace, these strategies will help you to\u00a0communicate with confidence\u00a0earn respect from your supervisor. Whenever possible, discuss important issues in person or over the telephone instead of email. As you cannot see a person\u2019s body language or sense their tone of voice in an email, there is a high likelihood of miscommunication, which can lead to even more conflicts.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">If your supervisor is a difficult person, the above strategies will still be helpful but you will need to be more assertive to get your point across. Some supervisors might try to intimidate you with negative comments (hostile-aggressives, complainers, know-it all experts, wet-blanket negativists, and micromanagers), while other supervisors might be nice people, but poor mentors (super-agreeable friendly types, indecisives, and super busy types). If you supervisor ignores you even when you meet in person (silent or unresponsive clam), you will probably need support from your colleagues or other supervisors to complete your work.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">Whether your supervisor is a negative person or just an inexperienced manager, you can resolve most conflicts if you communicate your ideas assertively, listen to his or her viewpoint, and discuss options for mutually beneficial solutions.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">If you package your challenges with your supervisor into learning opportunities as you are advancing career, you will become the independent, assertive, and proactive person that all employers are eager to hire.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin:0in 0in 8pt\"><span style=\"font-size:11pt\"><span style=\"line-height:115%\"><span style=\"font-family:Calibri,sans-serif\">An excellent resource to learn more about assertiveness skills is Dale Carnegie\u2019s book \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People\/dp\/0671027034\" style=\"color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How To Win Friends and Influence People.<\/a>\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Note: This post was originally published on Addgene blog and has been republished here with permission.\u00a0 Do you have a difficult supervisor, or do you have to work with difficult people? Each time I ask this question at my workshops, I get nods from nearly every participant. Robert Bramson, author \u201cCoping with Difficult People,\u201d identified [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1734,"featured_media":33313,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2370],"tags":[2703],"new_categories":[],"new_tags":[],"series":[],"class_list":["post-3422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career-advice-for-researchers","tag-mental-health"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors | Editage Insights<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"At times it may be difficult to work with your supervisor. To help you establish and maintain a healthy relationship, check out this post for some great tips.\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors | Editage Insights\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"At times it may be difficult to work with your supervisor. To help you establish and maintain a healthy relationship, check out this post for some great tips.\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Editage Insights\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Editage\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-04-07T15:01:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-15T06:30:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Farkas.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"656\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"336\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dora Farkas\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Editage\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Editage\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dora Farkas\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Dora Farkas\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/person\/fd0e56690572c582ec5fd750c9b86e42\"},\"headline\":\"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-04-07T15:01:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-01-15T06:30:14+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\"},\"wordCount\":1158,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"Mental Health\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Career Advice for Researchers\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\",\"name\":\"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors | Editage Insights\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-04-07T15:01:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-01-15T06:30:14+00:00\",\"description\":\"At times it may be difficult to work with your supervisor. To help you establish and maintain a healthy relationship, check out this post for some great tips.\u00a0\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp\",\"width\":656,\"height\":336},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/\",\"name\":\"Editage Insights\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Editage Insights\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/editage-insights-logo-1-scaled.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/editage-insights-logo-1-scaled.webp\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":324,\"caption\":\"Editage Insights\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Editage\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/Editage\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/person\/fd0e56690572c582ec5fd750c9b86e42\",\"name\":\"Dora Farkas\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/274c1f8244b6eb32a3948172595bebf7fc61e6f643cd6912cde4b520d57be3a5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/274c1f8244b6eb32a3948172595bebf7fc61e6f643cd6912cde4b520d57be3a5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dora Farkas\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/dora-farkas-1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors | Editage Insights","description":"At times it may be difficult to work with your supervisor. To help you establish and maintain a healthy relationship, check out this post for some great tips.\u00a0","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors | Editage Insights","og_description":"At times it may be difficult to work with your supervisor. To help you establish and maintain a healthy relationship, check out this post for some great tips.\u00a0","og_url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors","og_site_name":"Editage Insights","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Editage","article_published_time":"2020-04-07T15:01:46+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-01-15T06:30:14+00:00","og_image":[{"width":656,"height":336,"url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Farkas.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Dora Farkas","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Editage","twitter_site":"@Editage","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Dora Farkas","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors"},"author":{"name":"Dora Farkas","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/person\/fd0e56690572c582ec5fd750c9b86e42"},"headline":"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors","datePublished":"2020-04-07T15:01:46+00:00","dateModified":"2025-01-15T06:30:14+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors"},"wordCount":1158,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp","keywords":["Mental Health"],"articleSection":["Career Advice for Researchers"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors","url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors","name":"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors | Editage Insights","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp","datePublished":"2020-04-07T15:01:46+00:00","dateModified":"2025-01-15T06:30:14+00:00","description":"At times it may be difficult to work with your supervisor. To help you establish and maintain a healthy relationship, check out this post for some great tips.\u00a0","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/editage-insights-generic-banner_298.webp","width":656,"height":336},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/7-simple-strategies-to-resolve-conflicts-with-difficult-supervisors#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"7 Simple strategies to resolve conflicts with difficult supervisors"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/","name":"Editage Insights","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#organization","name":"Editage Insights","url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/editage-insights-logo-1-scaled.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/editage-insights-logo-1-scaled.webp","width":2560,"height":324,"caption":"Editage Insights"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Editage","https:\/\/x.com\/Editage"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/person\/fd0e56690572c582ec5fd750c9b86e42","name":"Dora Farkas","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/274c1f8244b6eb32a3948172595bebf7fc61e6f643cd6912cde4b520d57be3a5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/274c1f8244b6eb32a3948172595bebf7fc61e6f643cd6912cde4b520d57be3a5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Dora Farkas"},"url":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/dora-farkas-1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1734"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3422"},{"taxonomy":"new_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/new_categories?post=3422"},{"taxonomy":"new_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/new_tags?post=3422"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=3422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}