Hey Sweeties,
Good management is so overrated, nobody talks about the manager they love, who manages them well and is a great support to getting the best out of them in the workplace. No, it’s the bad managers that get conversation going between colleagues, friends and family, so if you think this is something to aspire to, read on!
How to be a Bad Manager: Four Easy Steps to Follow
Micro manage or manage too little
Screw how your team like to be managed, definitely don’t bother asking them, just adopt one of two management styles: micro manage so you request twenty catch ups a day to ensure they are completing their tasks to your exacting standards, even if you’re not even sure what that end result should look like; or manage so little, your team practically forget you’re there. If a task backfires and you’re in the firing line, blame the team because they should know how to time manage around all your catch-ups even if that means working over time, or they should have come to seek you out if they were unsure about how to do something, doesn’t matter that you were unreachable. Never take the blame, always blame the team.
Poor Motivators
Never empower your team by saying, “I need you (to do x)” or “I know you can do it, we just need to make these adjustments so you can achieve x”. You want to make them feel replaceable or that they’re not quite meeting expectation, so you need to say, “I need somebody (to do x)” etc. This works brilliantly while they are still in probation.
Bully
The worst, but if you’re planning on being a really bad manager this is the number one attitude to adopt. Be controlling, make your team feel like shit, don’t trust anyone to make their own decisions, and generally make everyone hate you. Read an account of how a bad manager made me leave a job, here.
Create an insecure environment
This is a great one if you want to succeed at being a bad manager as you can make your team feel like they could be replaced, or made redundant. You could spread some rumors around the office to create some anxiety about a management meeting happening later in the week, the team don’t need to know that it’s just a routine catch up. You could have a lot of fun with this, so be inventive.
What other tips can you provide for someone looking to be a bad manager?
Until next time x
