One day when the project manager got in my face I decided to confront him. Initially, I want to knock his block off. Instead, I maintained my cool and simply explained how myself and the rest of the team was feeling. I then closed my mouth and just listened. I was surprized by his response. He proceeded to the explain that our project was months behind schedule. It was way over budget and that if it didn't get turned around quickly that he, along with the rest of us, would likely be let go--like the previous project manager. He apologized for having been difficult but wanting me to know that he also felt like he was in a difficult situation. He then surprised me again by asking if I had any ideas as to how we could turn things around and increase productivity.

Even though the new project manager's personality didn't change much, I gained a new appreciation for why he acted the way he did. I even came to agree that maybe he was the type of manager that was needed to head our project.