You learn as much from a bad leader, if not more, than a great leader.
Great leaders embody respect and trust; they recognise and appreciate great work. Confidence soars.
My experience of a recent leader has been the opposite and will forever be a lesson in how not to lead.
Full of ‘self importance’, his team zoom calls were chaotic, most of his ‘what’s on my mind’ slots running to double his allocated time. His ‘possy’ of devoted employees (brought over from his last role) dutifully pandering to this being ‘how he is’ to avoid falling out of his favour, instead of healthily keeping his messaging tight and on time. Little chance was given for others to breathe: too quick to judge and criticise, he undermined solid work with ‘not good enough’.
He was a fidgeter, his body as chaotic as his thoughts: his hands moved in time to his verbosity like he was conducting an orchestra, his sentences finished with an upward tone as if asking a question. Key messages were unclear. He perceived his greatness while behind the scenes, confidence of people in his team suffered and his approach was mocked by some.
He was justly rewarded: the promotion and role he craved was given to another.
(Can be shared anonymously!)