THE “DARK” SIDE OF LEADERSHIP AND WORKPLACE OUTCOMES

The debate about whether leaders are born or made will continue without a satisfactory conclusion, because leadership styles actually stem from people’s personalities.  Leadership in reality actually is just a man or woman doing a job to the best of their ability.  Leadership is about leading and also a lot about learning.  As Henry Miller once said, the real leader has no need to lead; he is content to point the way.  Leading is less about forcing people to do something, and more about gently persuading them to do something with you.  But no one leadership size fits all.

However skilled a person might be at managing the people, many fail to apply similar principles in relationships with bosses.  Bosses too have feelings; and they can be hurt by the behaviour not only of their own boss but also of their subordinates.  All leaders are susceptible to the darker side of power.  There are 3 types of narcissistic leaders, namely, reactive, self-deceptive and constructive.  The range of behaviours experienced by workers with such leaders includes:

• playing favourites;
• dealing dirty work as punishment;
• threatening employees;
• blurring the lines between personal and professional;
• talking behind employees’ backs;
• putting employees down;
• public criticism;
• unrealistic expectations;
• telling lies; and
• illegal practices

 Outcomes

The 3 emotional outcomes are feeling hopeless, humiliated and anxious; whereas the 3 physical outcomes are retaliation, distancing and leaving.  Organizational outcomes can be seen through employee turnover and the creating of a destructive culture or it may cause a climate of distrust, disloyalty and low morale among employees.

Some bosses were born on the wrong side of the fence.  There are times when it is appropriate to run and leave.  But bear in mind that running usually means going into a new situation with a lot of uncertainty and the possibility that your new boss will be worse than the one you have now.  It’s better the devil you know.  Do not fight if you can’t win.  Accept it and do the best you can.

Surviving

Boss Management can be learned.  The 4 main building blocks of boss management are:

• Understanding yourself
• Understanding your boss
• Managing the relationship between ‘understanding yourself’ and ‘understanding your boss’

• Using your influencing skills to arrive at mutually satisfying (WIN/WIN) outcomes.

Understanding

There is a need to understand a few things about bosses.  People will feel better and performed better, if they are able to understand these few things about bosses:

1.         Loyalty: value to be valued

2.         Every boss has a style.  Every employee needs to know it

3.         Difficult or trying to difficult

4.         Leadership is earned: the difficulties of ‘‘becoming’’ excellent leaders

(Notes: Refer to the appropriate entries for 1 to 4)

Conclusion

No two bosses are the same.  They don't all have horns and a forked tail; some of them are quite decent.  It’s just a matter of perception or judgement rather than one of fact.  It all depends where you stand, and what your own values may be.

But one thing is certain.  All bosses are human and by definition have a heart and some really genuine feelings, many of which will be positive by any standards.  So if we don't get on with our particular boss, perhaps we should examine our own feelings and behaviour before casting the first stone.

When you change, you'll see things change for the better.  Work is regarded as a burden only by those in work; it is seen as a privilege by those out of work

References:

(2007),"Leadership is earned, says Boeing boss: But effectiveness can depend on self-awareness", Strategic Direction, Vol. 23 Iss: 8 pp. 9 - 11

Alison Starratt, Gina Grandy, (2010),"Young workers' experiences of abusive leadership", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 31 Iss: 2 pp. 136 – 158

Denys Page, (1984),"Yes, the boss is human too", Education + Training, Vol. 26 Iss: 1 pp. 28 – 29

J. Kenneth Matejka, Diane Dodd-McCue, D. Neil Ashworth, (1988),"Managing the Difficult Boss", Journal of Managerial Psychology, Vol. 3 Iss: 1 pp. 3 - 7

Stephen Xavier, (2005),"Are you at the top of your game? Checklist for effective leaders", Journal of Business Strategy, Vol. 26 Iss: 3 pp. 35 - 42

Thad B. Green, Jay T. Knippen, (1990),"When Your Boss Won't Change", Journal of Managerial Psychology, Vol. 5 Iss: 3 pp. 28 - 32