Worried About Bad Leadership? 6 Warning Signs Of Bad Leaders

Leadership has the power to change, innovate, and build the road to success. But leadership is not an easy game. It is a skill that many has to develop over time by redefining themselves and implementing the right strategies. Many leaders are not born gifted with leadership qualities. Still, they build their skills by learning every day from their own experiences.

What is Bad Leadership?

There are many ways to look at leadership and derive ideas to give us a good leadership perspective. A leader's sole motive is to lead, help the crowd in the picture, and work together to achieve it. The journey from the idea to the success, there are numerous setbacks, challenges, and hardships that a good leader takes on their shoulder and provides strength and motivation to others.

Bad leadership is its opposite. Leaders who are in charge but fail to lead due to a lack of leadership qualities set an example of bad leadership.

6 Warning Signs of Bad Leaders

The leadership behaviors that leaders show can be examined critically to understand the underlying incapabilities of theirs. A bad leader is not necessarily a wrong person, but, of course, someone who lacks self-confidence, humility, empathy, and other leadership qualities. So when do you know that a leader is incompetent at their job? Let's find out.

1. Leaders Who Do Not Put Others First

Leaders who do not care or keep others' needs first are a severe warning sign of bad leadership. Leadership, in a way, is more or less a selfless deed. Remember Uncle Ben's famous quote from Spider-Man - With great power comes great responsibility?' The quote is relevant to leadership.

Leaders are in that position where they can make a difference. They are trusted and believed in for their skills. The respect and the following that they enjoy has a price, and they must take it on themselves to serve people for the greater good. When leaders only keep interested in their agenda or needs, it is a warning sign of bad leadership.

Related: Servant Leadership, its Principles, and Examples in the Workplace

2. Leaders Who Do Not Listen

Active listening is a great skill that everyone must develop for their professional and personal growth. When you pay all your attention to the speaker, you also unconsciously respect their time and energy. It is unnecessary to agree on everything the speakers say.

Still, it is crucial to listen to them without being judgemental. Leaders who listen to their employees build a team that is loyal and understanding. Active listening helps us build perspective and let us be more compassionate towards each other.

Leaders with this communication skill know the employees' pulse and support and recognize them with utmost sincerity in the workplace. Any leader who never listens to other perspectives would always fail to make and implement the right decisions.

3. Leaders Who Do Not Recognize

It is the team that wins. People in a group need a daily dose of motivation to keep going. The team looks upto its leaders since they follow them and take them as a source of inspiration.

To keep the team happy, a work culture must have a culture of appreciation and recognition. And it is the leader's job to take care of these needs and give regular feedback and credit to boost motivation. If your leader does not appreciate or reward you for the excellent work, it is a sign of ineffective leadership.

Related: The Ultimate Guide To Employee Rewards and Recognition

4. Leaders Who Do Not Practice Transparency

Every company has well-defined goals and objectives that they want to achieve. The objectives are strategically planned to execute them effectively. Leaders are the ones who make these decisions for others to follow. While making these decisions, leaders must follow transparency and involve every team member to participate in it. It gives everyone a sense of equality and trust in management.

Also, any minor/significant achievements that the company achieves must be shared with the employees to keep them motivated. If leaders withheld any information from a business decision to implement new strategies, it spreads misinformation in the workplace. And that is not acceptable and is bad leadership.

Related: Why Transparency In The Workplace Can Help Your Business Grow

5. Leaders Who Lack Self-Confidence

The employees feed on the confidence of their leaders. When the leaders are not proactive or confident in making decisions, it leaves a wrong impression. Moreover, confidence is a crucial skill for any leader.

Confident leaders give their employees the right direction and provide them with the necessary information to help them achieve their goals. While confident leaders stumble, and they lack the sense of belief required to lead a team.

6. Leaders Who Do Not Empower

In any organization, there are times where employees feel unmotivated and go through a tough time. It could be both personal and professional. It could also be self-doubt or lack of satisfaction from not having enough freedom at work.

Good leaders understand these aspects well and always be there to empower people when needed. They provide everyone equal opportunities to thrive and make their own decisions. Good leaders are that way, not micro-managers. They believe in empowerment and thereby recognize future leaders. In contrast, bad leaders do not acknowledge this and do not empower their employees.

Related: Employee Empowerment: Are You Doing it Right?

Finally!

Do share your views on bad leadership in the comment section below. We would love to have your comments and put them on the blog to make it more insightful. For now, here is a leadership quote by Johny Quincy Adam that we want to share.

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.

This article is written by Braja Deepon Roy. He works as a Content Creator and Digital Marketer at Vantage Circle. He actively participates in the growth of corporate culture and keeps himself updated in this space. For any related queries, contact editor@vantagecircle.com