When you are at work sitting at your desk on a personal phone call, searching for personal subject matter on the Internet or idly drinking a cup of coffee, do you ever wonder for one moment what your boss thinks of you?

Another question: Do you ever wonder what your boss really thinks of you after he’s caught you playing solitaire on the computer – all after you’ve been asked twice to make phone calls and get some financial reports?

There will be a time when your boss will be able to share with someone else what he or she thinks about you. There will be a time when, for whatever reason, you leave your current job and search for another one. Your job-searching experience will bring havoc and pain. You can only hope the end results will be worth the effort. First, you will have to find a job of your desire with all of the benefits you need. Second, when you find the job of your choice, the tough decision has to be made by the current and former employer.

The potential employer has to make the decision of whether your performance is worthy and better than that of other applicants applying for the same job. The former employer decides if he or she wants to say superior things about your job performance.

There are times when supervisors and managers say bad things about former employees because they are listed as references and don’t want their former employees to obtain a new – and possibly better – job for jealousy reasons. Or perhaps they feel the employee doesn’t deserve the job because of their prior work ethic. Negative commentary that your resume references may say about you as an employee may be the reason you don’t get an interview or a job regardless of your experience and skill.

The following can give you some insight into how to find out what your boss truly thinks of you.

Have a friend write a professional letter addressed to you. Have him or her write the letter stating how good of a worker you were at your previous job and how great you will be for a new position. Make sure that this letter accidentally winds up in your boss’ mailbox. If the letter is returned to you with good feedback, then using him or her as a reference might be a good idea. If you don’t receive your letter or feedback, assume your boss really doesn’t care for you and that he or she tossed out your letter.

Or, have two of your friends make “business” calls to ask your boss questions about your work ethic. If he/she gives good responses, you know you can use your employer as a reference. If he or she has only bad things to say, you can write them off.

Many people may find these two suggestions unethical – or at the very least, a lot of effort for something that could be accomplished in a more straight-forward manner. If this is the case for you, it might be best to set up an appointment with your boss. Ask him or her to tell you what he or she really thinks of you. Ask for feedback on your performance as an employee. This way, you’ll know that if you don’t get the job, it’s not because you got a bad recommendation.

Columns reflect the opinion of the author and not necessarily that of the Northern Star staff.