Planet Small Business
  • Home
  • Start
    StartShow More
    opening a second business location
    Ultimate Guide to Opening a Second Location
    February 3, 2023
    Email marketing
    The Ultimate Guide to Creating an Effective Email Marketing Strategy for Small Businesses
    February 2, 2023
    The Ultimate Guide to the Best Banks for Small Business
    The Ultimate Guide to the Best Banks for Small Business
    January 30, 2023
    Setting Realistic and Ambitious Business Resolutions, Intentions and Goals
    Setting Realistic and Ambitious Business Resolutions, Intentions and Goals
    January 30, 2023
    Small business automation
    How Can I Use Artificial Intelligence (AI) In My Small Business?
    January 30, 2023
  • Run
    RunShow More
    4 Ways to Handle That Difficult Client
    4 Ways to Handle That Difficult Client
    December 28, 2022
    Top 10 signs you are a good boss
    December 21, 2022
    Ideas
    How to legally protect your intellectual property
    December 17, 2022
    Workplace laws
    5 Workplace Laws Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know
    December 16, 2022
    10 Signs You’re a Bad Boss
    December 1, 2022
  • Grow
    GrowShow More
    Email marketing
    The Ultimate Guide to Creating an Effective Email Marketing Strategy for Small Businesses
    February 2, 2023
    The Ultimate TikTok Guide for Small Business
    The Ultimate TikTok Guide for Small Business
    January 30, 2023
    Setting Realistic and Ambitious Business Resolutions, Intentions and Goals
    Setting Realistic and Ambitious Business Resolutions, Intentions and Goals
    January 30, 2023
    putting coin in the jar with plant
    The magic word that will explode your business
    January 1, 2023
    Market research
    Market Research on the Cheap
    December 14, 2022
  • Learn
    LearnShow More
    ChatGPT Says it is not going to destroy copywriters or the copywriting profession
    ChatGPT Says it is not going to destroy copywriters or the copywriting profession
    February 3, 2023
    ChatGPT Gives 4 Reasons Why It’s “Not Going to Kill Off Freelance Writers”
    ChatGPT Gives 4 Reasons Why It’s “Not Going to Kill Off Freelance Writers”
    February 2, 2023
    The Importance of a Good Bio
    The Importance of a Good Bio
    July 29, 2022
    Market Research on the Cheap
    Market Research on the Cheap
    May 11, 2022
    Intellectual property
    How to Legally Protect Your Intellectual Property
    May 11, 2022
0

No products in the cart.

Planet Small Business
  • Home
  • Start
  • Run
  • Grow
  • Learn
Search
  • Home
  • Start
  • Run
  • Grow
  • Learn
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
Run

10 Signs You’re a Bad Boss

Steve Strauss
Steve Strauss  - Editor December 1, 2022
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE

I thought that I once had the Worst Boss Ever. It was back when I was a young lawyer. My boss acted like I had practiced law for a decade (I was but a year out of law school), he was abrasive, mean, and condescending, and once handed me a box with about 5,000 sheets of paper in it and told me to have it analyzed – by the next morning.

Man, I hated working for him.

But then I heard about the boss that my buddy woks for. His main tactic is to scream at people, threaten to fire them, and then fire some. He fires different people every week. He leads, such as it is, through sheer intimidation. He sounds like a real jerk. Worst boss ever? He’s up there.

The funny thing is, I bet that both my old boss and my buddy’s boss both think they are pretty good bosses; that they get the job done. But employees know there is a whole lot more to being a boss than that. So, are you a good boss or a bad boss?

Here are 10 Traits of a Bad Boss. Test yourself:

1. You are arbitrary: Good bosses set rules, fair rules, and anticipate that everyone will live up to these standards. People who work for these bosses know what is expected of them. But bad bosses either have no policies, or move the line, or otherwise are arbitrary – rewarding employees they like, denying those they don’t, and altogether acting capricious in their policies and rules.

2. You micromanage: A bad boss hires people, but never trusts them enough to do their job on their own. This makes their employees afraid to act or make a mistake. This boss butts in, micromanages, criticizes, and rarely grants an employee the room to do their job independently, let alone well.

3. You gossip: A good boss is supposed to lead and inspire. A bad boss engages in petty office politics and gets involved in the day-to-day machinations that they really should be above. Gossiping about employees is bad form for any boss.

4. You are abusive/abrasive: This is the boss my friend works for. This sort of boss often mistakenly believes that yelling and intimidating people “keeps them on their toes.” It does keep them on their toes all right, peeking around the corner for a way out of this horrible workplace.

5. You are a creep: Maybe you make inappropriate comments or crude jokes. Maybe you are a little too touchy. Whatever the case, your employees really don’t like you because you are, well, a creep.

6. You have no manners: Even bosses are expected to say please and thank you. In fact, bosses should do so more often because the boss sets the tone. If you don’t thank your people for a job well done, or say you are sorry when you make a mistake, or otherwise lack basic manners, you are a bad boss.

7. You treat people like children: The people who work for you are adults. They are grown up. If they need to stay home one day because their kid is sick, then they should have the ability to tell the truth and be treated like the adults they are. But the bad boss berates employees, does not trust them, and really does not trust them to be responsible people.

8. You don’t foster teamwork: Great bosses create teams of people committed to the goal. Bad bosses alienate people and teamwork is an oxymoron.

9. You steal credit and/or give no credit: A good boss gives credit where credit is due. Bad bosses not only do not, some of them even steal the credit due another.

10. You are a slave driver: Bad bosses work people too hard and think nothing of it. They expect extra hours from folks but don’t reward them for that. They act like having a job should be its own reward and that working extra hard for no extra pay is reasonable. It’s not.

Honorable mentions: The boss who never sets goals. The boss that never makes exceptions to any rule or policy. The boss that refuses to lead.

Sign Up For Our Newsletter

Get the latest updates, tips, and tools via email from Planet Small Business.
Steve Strauss December 1, 2022
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Email Print
Avatar photo
Posted by Steve Strauss Editor
Follow:
Senior small business columnist at USA TODAY and author of 15 books, including The Small Business Bible, Steve is your host here at PlanetSmallBusiness.com.
Previous Article Concept creative idea and innovation. Paper scrap ball yellow colour outstanding different group with light bulb symbol The Sales Secrets of Steve Jobs and Tony Robbins
Next Article Business mentor A small business mentor will make you rich – in more ways than one!
Leave a comment Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You Might Also Like

4 Ways to Handle That Difficult Client
Run

4 Ways to Handle That Difficult Client

December 28, 2022
Run

Top 10 signs you are a good boss

December 21, 2022
Ideas
Run

How to legally protect your intellectual property

December 17, 2022
Workplace laws
Run

5 Workplace Laws Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know

December 16, 2022
Follow US

© 2023 PlanetSmallBusiness.com

  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • Contact Us
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?