So, You Want to Be a Crummy Leader?

Wow, Tempus really does Fugit! What an insane year it has been - plenty of good thoughts, but not much time to put them into practice. That is a problem shared by many leaders. The vision is always churning internally, but the application sometimes lags behind while the urgent calls us away from the important. As I have said before, John Lennon nailed it when he said, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans". I am guilty as charged.

Because it has been a long year since I have shared, I think now is a good time to revisit what I believe are the foundational points of leadership - but with a different spin. Do I really want to be a Crummy Leader? Of course not, and neither do you. But if you follow this list of "DON'Ts", you will become the crummiest of the crummy. That's pretty crummy. 

• DON'T care about your people, your customers, or your followers
• DON'T be a problem solver
• DON'T roll with the punches

So that's it, right? Not...even...close, bud. Sorry, I had Spicoli on the brain for a moment.



If you find yourself regularly following those don'ts, someone had better hide the shoelaces and sharp objects - you are well on your way to committing leadership suicide. The unfortunate people who look to you for leadership are already dying a slow death - you probably don't even realize it. And where does that leave your organization? Hmmm....

Here are some more ways to be a crummy leader:

• DON'T put the right people in the right roles
• DON'T share your vision or set goals and expectations (you do have a vision, don't you?)
• DON'T give your people the tools they need to get the job done
• DON'T provide sincere encouragement or positive feedback
• DON'T inspect what you expect

There you go - how to be a Crummy Leader in a nutshell, and you didn't even have to sit through a 30-minute infomercial. I'll expand on each of these points one-by-one at a later time. For now, turn your DON'Ts into DO's - it will make a significant difference in your effectiveness as a leader.

Thanks for reading.

J.