How to Be a Bad Leader

I've been meaning to write a book called How to be a Bad Leader for years. I reckon it would be a bestseller, but there must already be one out there, because time and time again, I hear experiences of bad leadership, as if decades of proven, evidence-based work about what makes good leadership doesn't seem to have trickled-down.

So I am calling it.

Bottom line - here's your job as a leader:

To develop the potential of others.

You do this by having their engagement. You do that with
- Appreciation
- Acknowledgement
- Challenge
- Purpose
- Autonomy

There are a few simple guidelines to do that. Here are a few to help you be a bad leader.

#1: Be the expert
You know everything.
Why empower others when they can marvel at your brilliance?
Never: be humble and curious.

#2: Take credit
After all, the buck stops with you.
Never: appreciate others.

#3: Go it alone
You can do it better than anyone else anyway.
Never: be transparent and include others. They'll only slow you down.

#4: Withold commitment
Cancel meetings or show up late. Don't they know how busy and important you are?
Never: show up. They'll only get complacent.

#5: Don't take a stand
It'll only be used against you later.
Never: make value-lead decisions. You're not a hippy.

#6: Interrupt and talk over people
You don't have time for their meanderings.
Never: let people finish their sentences. Keeps them on their toes.

#7: Tick the diversity and inclusion box
It's a hashtag, not essential to the long-term health of your organization.
Never: take a systemic approach. You never know what you might discover. Hashtag lawsuit.

#8: Don't take time for strategic thinking every week
Who is going to fight all those fires if you do?
Never: go offline. People will think you're lazy.

#9: Don't care about people
You're a leader, not a therapist.
Never: demonstrate you give a damn about them. They'll only take advantage.

#10: Never take time for self-care.
You'll sleep when you're dead.
Never: model good stress management. Before you know it, they'll all be doing it.


Please add your own examples of how to be a bad leader, to ensure people disengage, to increase toxic stress, and to have a high people turnover. This is what we sign up for. Let's not feel shame if we're being bad leaders in some ways, but let's try to do better. The world needs us.

Image credit: Tim Mossholder