With spring around the corner, many young men and women are preparing to graduate. Many of them will enter the business world for the first time. If they are like me, there will be certain lessons they will learn to be successful. One of the most important lessons is how to manage your boss. Read on below to find 5 simple steps to managing your boss.

First of all, understand that your boss will give you more autonomy the better you keep them informed. Update them regularly whether they ask for it or not. Understand that your boss has many projects and people to look over and the easier you make that for them, the more they appreciate you. Even if the news is bad getting it out sooner rather than later is always best.

Remember that all businesses are organizations and that to get ahead you need to be organized too. And that organization needs to be obvious. When you meet with your boss, always know what you need to cover from most important to least. That way your boss will be impressed with your ability to prioritize and if you run out of time, there will never be any important issues that get left unresolved.

Most bosses, if asked, will say they don’t want to be interrupted. But there is a fine art of following up with your boss on important issues. You don’t want to bug him or her but you do need to get attention when you need it. Be persistent but not pesty. Be courteous of their privacy and knock before entering their office and never enter when they are on the phone unless you have a prescheduled meeting and they wave you in.

Make your boss look good and, if you can, make their peers look good also. If you constantly make your boss look good they will keep you with them as they rise. If you occasionally make their peers look good (and they realize it) you are positioning yourself to be seen as someone who’ll make anyone look good and thus become a coveted employee. If they end up with an opening that could be a promotion for you, you’ll be a shoe in if they already know and respect you.

Be grateful for the job and be respectful of the burdens your boss is carrying. All to often all we see is a person who’s making more money than us and, perhaps, we are a bit envious of them. We start expecting them to be more intelligent, more mature, and more subject to our needs. But think of the impact you will create when you let your boss know that you are happy to have your job and respect them as a person. I’m not advocating being some sort of overly optimistic happy Harry or to kiss up to your boss at every turn. No it’s a quiet gratitude and gentle respect I’m advocating.

I assure you that if you follow these five steps not only will you see greater success in the business world than do those who don’t, you’ll end up being happier as well. And that’s just goodness no matter how you look at it.