{"id":663,"date":"2015-10-21T10:00:22","date_gmt":"2015-10-21T10:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/?p=663"},"modified":"2025-07-01T17:20:23","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T17:20:23","slug":"are-you-a-bad-boss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/are-you-a-bad-boss\/","title":{"rendered":"Are you a bad boss?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #000000\">An old adage says, \u201cPeople don\u2019t leave their companies, they leave their managers.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">There are lots of reasons an employee may leave a company . . . higher pay, better hours, shorter commute, etc. . . . but in many cases, a bad boss is in there too.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Think about your own work experience and you\u2019ll probably be able to recall a boss or two (or more) that you really wouldn\u2019t want to work for again.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000\">At a recent meeting of the Schaumburg Business Association, Jeff Anderson, President of the Lake Forest Graduate School of Management, spoke about bad bosses and how badbossmanship (my made up word, not his) can cause good people to leave their companies.\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">He outlined the most prevalent bad boss behaviors in hopes that bosses in the room might recognize some of those behaviors in themselves and try to mitigate them.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">I have listed those behaviors below.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">If you have the honesty, courage, and self-awareness to learn if you are guilty of any bad boss behaviors, please read on.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">If not, better stop right here.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #000000\">Are you a bad boss?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000\">Business owners and upper level managers I\u2019ve known over the years would rarely own up to being a \u201cbad boss.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Demanding?<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Yes.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Challenging?<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Absolutely!<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">But bad?<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">No. <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">The problem with terms like \u201cdemanding\u201d and \u201cchallenging\u201d is they are often an attempt to mask negative behaviors that the boss knows he or she has, but doesn\u2019t want to acknowledge or change.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">So let\u2019s take a look at these bad boss behaviors and you can decide whether you own any of them or not.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Poor emotional control.<\/strong>\u00a0 Are you easily upset by the faults of others?\u00a0 Probable bad boss (BB).\u00a0 Do people keep their heads down each day until they figure out what sort of mood you\u2019re in?\u00a0 Most likely BB.\u00a0 Under stress, do you yell, scream, turn red in the face, slam doors, even throw stuff?\u00a0 Definite BB.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Lack of integrity or consistency.<\/strong>\u00a0 Do you ignore rules you hold others accountable to follow?\u00a0 Do you fail to honor your promises or follow through on your commitments?\u00a0 Either one of these will earn you a BB plaque for your wall.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Poor at building or leading teams.<\/strong>\u00a0 Are you unable to clearly communicate what you want your team to do and why you need them to do it?\u00a0 Probable BB.\u00a0 Do you ignore alternative ideas and opinions from your team members?\u00a0 No doubt BB.\u00a0 Do you hog the limelight and take credit for the work of your subordinates?\u00a0 Oh yeah, big time BB.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Doesn\u2019t nurture relationships well.<\/strong>\u00a0 Have you ever said, \u201cI don\u2019t care if they like me as long as they respect me?\u201d\u00a0 Automatic BB.\u00a0 Do you like to work alone or only with your most inner circle?\u00a0 Probable BB.\u00a0 Do you know your employees on a personal level . . . what their aspirations and challenges are?\u00a0 If not, probable BB.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Indecisive.<\/strong>\u00a0 Do you procrastinate when confronted with a tough decision?\u00a0 Likely BB.\u00a0 Do you consistently ask for more and more information . . . more than is necessary to make an informed decision?\u00a0 Likely BB.\u00a0 Do you ever delay making a decision in hopes the situation will somehow resolve itself?\u00a0 That will earn you a BB label every time.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Micromanager.<\/strong>\u00a0 Are you a perfectionist (c\u2019mon, be honest)?\u00a0 Almost certainly BB material.\u00a0 Have you ever said, \u201cBy the time I show somebody else how to do this, I could have done it myself?\u201d\u00a0 Yep, BB.\u00a0 Is it difficult for you to trust others?\u00a0 Also an almost certain BB.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Poor at managing change.<\/strong>\u00a0 Do changes in your industry or market tend to sneak up and bite you without your seeing them coming?\u00a0 Way BB.\u00a0 Are you in denial, telling yourself, \u201cAw this is just a blip that will pass and then it will be business as usual?\u201d\u00a0 Another way BB.\u00a0 When change is upon you, are you able to fully and honestly communicate the change to your employees and what the company\u2019s response will be?\u00a0 If not, another BB plaque for your wall.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000\">The key here is awareness.\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Sometimes we may exhibit some of these behaviors unconsciously, or at least we may be unconscious to the pain these behaviors can cause our employees.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">But once we become aware of our negative behaviors, as thinking, intelligent beings, we can do something about them.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">We may not be able to change our spots entirely (after all, these behaviors began forming when we were in the cradle), but we can come up with coping mechanisms or workarounds.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">If you\u2019re a boss and are comfortable in your leadership role, you can even enlist the aid of your employees.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Tell them, \u201cHey, I\u2019m not happy with the way I handle myself in these kinds of situations, but I\u2019m working on it.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">You can help me by telling me if I\u2019m making progress and by letting me know if I start to slip and fall back.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000\">Even one of these behaviors can be toxic to an organization, and the more of them there are, the worse it gets.\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">Good people will tolerate them for a little while, but ultimately, they\u2019ll leave in search of something better.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">If you\u2019d rather spend your time recruiting to fill empty seats than try to change your behavior, fine.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">That\u2019s your conscious decision.<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000\">But since it\u2019s easier to hold onto good people than it is to find new ones, it makes more sense to try to purge these behaviors not only from yourself, but from all your managers as well.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An old adage says, \u201cPeople don\u2019t leave their companies, they leave their managers.\u201d\u00a0 There are lots of reasons an employee may leave a company . . . higher pay, better hours, shorter commute, etc. . . . but in many cases, a bad boss is in there too.\u00a0 Think about your own work experience and<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/are-you-a-bad-boss\/\">Read More\u2026<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[39,37,36,33,30,29,127,26,22],"tags":[101],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=663"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":864,"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663\/revisions\/864"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rocksolidbizdevelopment.com\/ourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}