Bad leadership

Not everyone is born to lead.  Some people who hold leadership positions turn out to be incompetent (e.g., Austin Powers, Monty Python), rigid (e.g., Pres. Richard Nixon), corrupt (e.g., financier Bernie Madoff, Illinois Gov. Rod Bagojevic), or evil (Saddam Hussein, Adolf Hitler).

These, of course, are extremes.  If you work or volunteer for a non-profit organization, you may not see such extreme behavior among your staff leadership but you could encounter people who are just not good leaders.  How do recognize them (or yourself)?

1.   Poor leaders give poor direction to staff and volunteers.  They’re not good supervisors, do not support or inspire people and may lack vision for what the organization needs or its direction.   As a result, boundaries are not clear and people often stumble over each other trying to get things done.

2.   They often rule by intimidation.  Signs of this are when staff don’t speak up at meetings, have to ask permission to do virtually anything and won’t take risks in suggesting new ideas or ways to improve.  Being in control is more important to this kind of leader than getting ideas from others.

3.   When things don’t go well, they are quick to point out who failed.  Dividing people works, in the leader’s mind, to secure their own status.  Some volunteer leaders will also behave this way, blaming the staff when things aren’t going well, even if the volunteers are at fault.

4.   Change for bad leaders is something to resist and fear, not embrace.  Keeping the ship steady is a priority, risk taking is scary and, well, risky.

5.   Team building, professional development, strategic planning  - these are all bad words to the poor leader.   They are all measurable and, therefore, create a threat to this kind of leader who fears that he will be judged against these benchmarks.

6.   Usually organizations with poor leaders have high staff turnover and a difficult time getting people to serve on the board or committees.

When I started my consulting business more than 10 years ago, someone advised me of this cardinal rule:  never work for or with someone who will make you sick.  Poor leadership can make people sick – and it certainly won’t help them be more successful.   I would steer clear.

Of course, if you are reading this and see yourself in the six characteristics above, that’s a different problem.