It all boils down to understanding ego states(Parent, adult and child) and interpersonal skills .
Lots of good advice given already.
If your boss is always demonstrating the "explosive behaviour", interpersonal skill gurus would coin it an child type action. If you shout back it is a child like reaction. If you try to talk him out of it, you go into the adult mode and pull him into reacting in an adult mode himself. But once in a time you have to react in a child mode to make him realize he is wrong and bring him back on track.
Having said all this, no two people react similarly under similar circumstances, there are so many things affecting the way one reacts. The same person might react differently to the same action differently at two different instances. So, you have to decide, what is best for you, under a circumstance.
Once you decide your course of action, go through with it, and then don't look back and say, maybe I shouldn't have reacted the way I did, or I should have reacted this way... If things don't work out for you, think that this is what I should be doing the next time I am in a similar circumstance. Have conviction in your own belief and live with it. I am relatively less experienced than many who have posted on this thread, but this is the way I work. As far as possible try to bring everyone, your superior(s), your peer(s) and colleague(s) into an adult=adult relationship with you rather than a parent=child.
Some training courses are good for employees in an organisation to understand this too. If you have a reasonably good personnel department, select some good training programmes on interpersonal skills and get them organised. Read books like"I'm okay, you are okay". (Don't be a problem finder but a solution giver). Everything in work finally boils down to attitude....(Again, I learnt this from other posts on this site and have long since started enjoying my work assignments much more since employing this in my day to day work).
I have had a boss in the past who similar to funnelguy, always was antagonistic against me because he felt his boss and the plant president were referring things to me directly. There was also the fact that he considered me more qualified for the job than he was.Once I understod his behaviour, it became easier for me, because I always kept posting him about such developments. By keeping him in the loop always, (I also let him get credit once in a while by having him reply to the queries) he soon felt I was an asset to him and the team and soon we were on an adult=adult relationship. Maybe it would be interesting for you to brainstorm and do a C-E study on why and when he gets upset and accordingly try to seek a solution. I know this sounds too theoritical, but who knows it may work.
Thanks and regards
Sayee Prasad R
Ph: 0097143968906
Mob: 00971507682668
email: sayee_prasad@yahoo.com
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