The Toxic Leader Score
Your Toxic Leader Score* (TLS) is the level of unnecessary irritation you cause others. If you occasionally irritate colleagues by arriving late, you’re a 3 on a range from 1 to 10.
If you frequently irritate colleagues, but don’t realize it, your TLS is 9. The worst leaders don’t know they’re toxic.
10 ways to elevate your Toxic Leader Score:
- Make everything about results. “Relationships are for babies and losers.”
- Minimize or ignore emotion and energy. “Just do your job!”
- Change course in mid-stream without preparing people or giving reasons.
- Complain more than affirm and compliment.
- Devalue progress. When someone makes progress, remind them they have far to go.
- Set long-term goals – ignore short-term wins.
- Focus on fixing weaknesses, rather than maximizing strengths.
- Be a know-it-all.
- Interrupt people.
- Believe it’s all about the money.
Leadership is more than vision and strategy. It’s also inspiration. Your unscientific Inspiration Score (IS) is your ability to tap the power of happiness.
10 Ways to elevate your Inspiration Score:
- Dedicate yourself to building positive energy environments. The most powerful thing you do is create positive environments where people love coming to work.
- Show respect. If you want people to act like owners, stop treating them like slaves.
- Be decisive with openness.
- Seek input.
- Explore options.
- Explain purpose.
- Make decisions.
- Adapt as you go.
- Trust people. Meddlers and micro-managers top the Toxic Leader chart.
- Ask questions, gently. Questions feel like interrogations when all you care about are results.
- Make work about them, not you. Help people get where they want to go.
- Give helpful feedback.
- Practice open handed generosity.
- Pat people on the back, literally. Touch energizes. But, don’t lay your hand on people.
- Pursue excellence collaboratively. Set high standards and figure out how to reach them together.
What behaviors make leaders toxic?
What behaviors make leaders inspirational?
*TLS is an unscientific scale created for this post.
GREAT Post, Dan. Funny serious stuff. I hope that the people who really have the toxicity problem actually see that list of things to do NOT as a serious checklist for their behavior. I do know some that would see a benefit in using it that way, I think! (grin)
Feedback. Intention. Desired outcomes.
Continue to poke at these things the way you do!
Maybe we DO need a self-rating scale. I know I can be a bit toxic now and then. I guess the real question, the coaching framework, is “Do you see this as a problem for you?”
.
Thanks Dr. Scott. Glad you enjoy my weak attempts at sarcasm. But, I think the TLS could actually catch on.. 🙂
Regarding the coaching question: “Do I see this as a problem for me?” … Definitely NOT. You are the one with the problem.
Excellent. Made me do a little self-examination. No one wants to be a toxic leader, but the ones who are, don’t know it. I’m passing this post on to my non-toxic leader friends…they more we work on this, the less toxicity we’ll put up with.
Thanks Kris. Whatever you do, don’t pass it along to a toxic leader. 🙂
When I was reading first half of your post it was feeling hash and I thought the truth is harsh and you using very harsh words. But when I started reading the second half of the post I realized that the truth is inspiring and you are using inspiring words. Excellent way to write a great post. You have successfully communicated your message.
Thanks lalitbhojawani. Glad you notice the technique. I often start with the dark side and use language that even makes me feel uncomfortable, sometimes.
Making rash, knee-jerk decisions make leaders toxic.
Treating every challenge or obstacle as though it were a crisis out of control also makes leaders toxic.
Allowing incompetency and unprofessionalism makes leaders toxic.
LOVE IT! Thanks Beth.
Dan, scientific, empirical, theoretical, or even eccentric—I think your Toxic Leader Score and leadership Inspiration Score is pure “introspective” genius. Whatever gets us to SEE what we could be doing–and what we are doing well and can be doing more of—is what YOU and your writings are all about.
I recall a young physician of many years ago who had an idea for something he called a Family Functioning Index, whereby he believed he could ask a family’s children a few yes or no questions about home, mom and dad, and how family members get along and relate with each other. His thesis was rejected by the “empirical” professional governing body of the day. Today—some 20 years later—his Family Functioning Index is part of the MMPI, a psychological assessment in widespread use.
Leaders should not fear to think deep and new—or even eccentric, for every idea now accepted… was once eccentric, theoretical and unscientific.
Thanks Books. You certainly catch the spirit of this post! I always thought I was ahead of my time!! 🙂
But, I’ve seen and done most of the things on the TLS list.. ugh!
Scary… I have family that have done every item on your list of ways to raise your TLS!!! But rather than try to lower that score, they – at best – ignore it. ONLY item of value is the stock price.
Thanks John. You can pick your friends but you can’t pick your family. I’m all about just pretending the bad news doesn’t exist. I’m going out to break the gas gauge in my truck! That dang thing keeps going toward the “E.”
Need to edit more… That should have been ‘I have family WHO HAVE BOSSES that have…’
Dan
great article on Toxic leadership. What I have found is the toxic leader usually doesn’t realize they are one and either minimize when confronted or go on the attack (just from my experience).
How does one address those T.L.s?
Failure to manage the client who makes frequent, sudden, and outrageous changes to scope or schedule. It demoralizes the team and diminishes peoples’ view of the leader.
Dan,
Very interesting subject, however as I think about it the term toxic leader is, to me, an oxymoron. The people and behaviours you describe are not those of a true leader, but one who has positional power granted by the organization somehow. Normally these types have attached themselves to more power people in the organization who continue to see a much different person than the subordinates who the “Toxic Leader” presides over. Toxic leaders are really dictators and autocrats who coerce and force actions; not leaders at all. Ultimately they wash-out any motivation talented employees have to offer the organization. I would bet that many people witness this at their workplace.
True leaders are a rare commodity I have discovered over many years. Those who are granted authority are not particularly leaders. Often, the true leader in any group is not the one who is granted authority, but the one other look to for direction, guidance, education, and general mentoring.
This post has affirmed what I felt about a previous boss: she was a little toxic. This should really catch on in HR circles.
Good article
Leadership………is when the charges feel like they are working ‘with’ you rather than ‘for’ you!
All too often those with a degree mistake education for wisdom