Shows / The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
Every workplace has that boss — the one who micromanages, the one who takes credit, the one who makes you dread Mondays. On The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dissect real-world cases of toxic management and teach you how to survive and even thrive under them. Drawing on anonymized stories from Fortune 500 employees, HR whistleblowers, and organizational psychology studies, they map the tactics of difficult bosses: gaslighting, credit theft, impossible deadlines…
Episodes
The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace SurvivalHow to Manage a Boss Who Fails Upward
This episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a deeply frustrating workplace dynamic: the boss who keeps getting promoted despite being incompetent. Lucas…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Takes Credit from Your Team
Episode 111 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a subtle but corrosive workplace dynamic: when your boss takes credit not just from you, but from your direct…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Blames You for Their Mistakes
In this episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle a common but rarely discussed workplace dynamic: the boss who shifts blame onto you when…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
When Your Boss Uses Your Personal Data Against You
Episode 109 of The Difficult Boss Podcast explores a nightmare scenario: what happens when a boss weaponizes the personal information you shared in confidence…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
Managing a Boss Who Takes Credit for Your Work in Meetings
Lucas and Luna tackle a particularly frustrating workplace dynamic: the boss who publicly claims your work as their own during meetings, then privately…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Gaslights You
Episode 107 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles gaslighting bosses — the subtle but corrosive behavior where a manager denies reality, rewrites history, or…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Hides Behind Email
Lucas and Luna tackle a fresh angle in workplace survival: the boss who communicates exclusively through email, avoiding face-to-face or real-time…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Takes Credit for Your Ideas
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the delicate art of managing a credit-stealing boss without blowing up your career. They break down three specific…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Plays Favorites
In this episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle a subtle but corrosive workplace dynamic: the boss who openly favors certain team members…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Tells You How to Do Your Job
Lucas and Luna tackle a common workplace frustration: the boss who constantly tells you how to do your job — not what to deliver, but the exact steps and…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
Managing a Boss Who Is a Perfectionist
In Episode 102 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how to manage a supervisor whose obsession with perfection slows down work and demoralizes…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Avoids Conflict
Episode 101 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles the passive-aggressive manager who dodges every hard conversation. Lucas and Luna unpack a real case from a…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Survive a Boss Who Rejects All Your Ideas
This episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast marks our 100th episode by tackling one of the most maddening workplace dynamics: a manager who shuts down every…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Expects Loyalty Above All
Episode 99 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles the boss who demands loyalty as the highest virtue, even when it conflicts with doing what's right for…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Gives Vague Feedback
Lucas and Luna tackle the frustrating scenario of a boss who gives vague, non-actionable feedback like 'step it up' or 'be more strategic.'…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
Managing a Boss Who Micromanages Your Process
In episode 97 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle the micromanager: the boss who needs to know every detail, approve every step, and…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Withholds Information
Lucas and Luna tackle one of the trickiest workplace dynamics: a boss who deliberately keeps you out of the loop. Drawing on research from Harvard Business…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Never Says Thank You
Episode 95 tackles the silent morale killer of a boss who never expresses gratitude. Lucas and Luna explore why some managers withhold appreciation, the…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Undermines Your Authority
Episode 94 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a tricky situation: when your boss consistently undermines your authority in front of your team or peers…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Expects 24-7 Availability
In this episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most draining workplace dynamics: a boss who expects you to be available around…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Pits You Against Coworkers
Episode 92 of The Difficult Boss Podcast explores the toxic dynamic of bosses who intentionally create competition among team members—pitting employees against…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Takes Credit for Your Ideas in Private
In a recent survey of 1,500 US professionals by the Workplace Bullying Institute, 38 percent reported having a boss who took credit for their work, but only 12…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Takes Credit for Your Ideas in Public
Your boss presents your idea in a meeting as if it were theirs. It stings. This episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo digs into why this happens…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Steals Your Ideas
Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most frustrating workplace dynamics: a boss who takes your idea in a meeting and presents it as their own. They break down why…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Changes the Rules Mid-Project
Lucas and Luna tackle a classic workplace nightmare: the boss who moves the goalposts after you've already started the work. They break down why managers…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Takes Credit for Your Work
Episode 87 tackles a workplace betrayal that's both maddening and nuanced: the boss who presents your ideas, your data, or your deliverables as their own…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
Managing Your Boss Social Media Boundaries
You know the boss who follows you on Instagram, likes your posts at 11 p.m., and sends work messages on weekends through DMs? In episode 86 of The Difficult…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Gaslights You
In this episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most insidious workplace dynamics: gaslighting. They break down how gaslighting…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Is Never Available
Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most frustrating workplace scenarios: a boss who is perpetually unavailable. They dissect why some managers turn absence into…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Creates a Culture of Blame
In Episode 83 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most corrosive workplace dynamics: a boss who fosters a culture of blame. Drawing…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Undermines You in Meetings
Episode 82 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a specific workplace nightmare: the boss who publicly undermines you during meetings. Lucas and Luna dissect…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Uses Silence as a Weapon
Ever had a boss who simply stops talking to you? No feedback, no direction, just cold silence that leaves you guessing and anxious. In this episode, Lucas and…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Plays Favorites
Episode 80 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles one of the most corrosive workplace dynamics: a boss who openly plays favorites. Lucas and Luna break down a…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Competes With You
Lucas and Luna tackle a tricky workplace dynamic: the boss who treats you as a rival rather than a teammate. They break down why some managers feel threatened…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Only Gives Negative Feedback
Lucas and Luna explore the demoralizing pattern of the boss who never says 'good job' — only points out what went wrong. They break down the…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Blames You for Their Mistakes
In this episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most frustrating workplace dynamics: a boss who blames you for their own…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Micromanages Your Every Move
In Episode 76 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most frustrating workplace dynamics: the micromanager. They break down why some…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Withholds Recognition
Lucas and Luna tackle the subtle but corrosive problem of a boss who never acknowledges your work. Drawing on a 2024 study from Achievers Workforce Institute…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Hires You as a Scapegoat
Episode 74 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a particularly toxic manager type: the boss who brings you on not to succeed, but to absorb blame for their…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Uses Fear as a Management Tool
This episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a toxic but common leadership style: management by fear. Lucas and Luna break down how fear-based bosses…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Gives Conflicting Directions
Ever had a boss who tells you one thing in the morning, then reverses course by lunch? In this episode, Lucas and Luna unpack why some managers give…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Is a Chronic People-Pleaser
Episode 71 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles a boss archetype that's often overlooked: the chronic people-pleaser. Lucas and Luna break down how a…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Hoards Information
In episode 70 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle the information-hoarding boss who deliberately withholds context, data, or key updates to…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Keeps You on Standby
If your boss treats your time as a flexible resource you manage rather than a finite asset they respect this episode is for you. Lucas and Luna break down the…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Hires You as Their Therapist
Lucas and Luna explore the tricky dynamic of a boss who treats you like their personal therapist—venting about personal problems, oversharing marital…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Gives Inconsistent Feedback
In this episode, Lucas and Luna tackle the challenge of working with a boss whose feedback changes from week to week, leaving you unsure where you stand. They…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Is a Chronic Under-Delegator
Episode 66 tackles the under-delegator boss: the manager who won't let go of work they should hand off, leaving you underutilized and them burnt out…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Takes Credit for Your Work
Lucas and Luna discuss the delicate art of reclaiming credit when your boss presents your work as theirs. Drawing on a 2024 study from the Journal of…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Is a Chronic Under-Delegator
Lucas and Luna tackle a tricky workplace dynamic: the boss who just won't let go of tasks you could handle. They explore why some managers hoard…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Gaslights You in Private
Lucas and Luna dig into a specific and insidious pattern: the boss who only gaslights you behind closed doors, never in front of witnesses. They break down a…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Steals Your Mentorship Opportunities
Lucas and Luna tackle a subtle but damaging workplace problem: a boss who intercepts mentorship or high-visibility assignments meant for you. Lucas dissects a…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Undermines You in Front of Others
In Episode 61 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle the painful dynamic of a boss who publicly undermines you — correcting you in meetings…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Schedules Back-to-Back Meetings
In Episode 60 of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna tackle the boss who fills your calendar with back-to-back meetings, leaving zero time for actual…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Ignores Your Career Growth
Episode 59 tackles a painful workplace dynamic: the boss who is nice, approachable, even supportive in day-to-day work, but totally disengaged when it comes to…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Set Boundaries with a Boss Who Expects 24-7 Availability
In this episode, Lucas and Luna tackle one of the most draining workplace dynamics of 2026: the boss who expects you to be on call around the clock, whether…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Is a Chronic Under-Delegate
In this episode of The Difficult Boss Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore the frustration of a boss who won't let go of tasks you could do better and faster…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Handle a Boss Who Gives Vague Feedback
Episode 56 of The Difficult Boss Podcast tackles the frustrating scenario of a boss who gives vague, non-specific feedback like 'step it up' or…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Survive a Boss Who Micromanages Your Every Move
Micromanagement is one of the most draining workplace dynamics, but you don't have to just endure it. In this episode, Lucas and Luna break down a real…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Is a Chronic Under-Delegate
Lucas and Luna tackle the frustration of a boss who won't delegate — leaving you with too little work and no growth. They discuss why some managers hoard…
- The Difficult Boss Podcast with Fexingo: Managing Up, Toxic Managers, and Workplace Survival
How to Manage a Boss Who Plays Favorites
Episode 53 tackles a subtle but corrosive workplace dynamic: the boss who openly or covertly favors certain team members. Lucas and Luna break down how…