I have to say, once or twice, I’ve worked for people who must have tried to get me to quit. Unfortunately for them, I’m dedicated, a hard worker and am not one to easily give up. Still, maybe others are easier to push aside or have their egos shattered. Clearly, the people who pushed me around have done it for many years. How do I know? Their reputation preceded them.
I shouldn’t judge these people or their tactics too harshly, after all, they worked; for many, it’s led to promotion after promotion. Who knows, maybe you’re ready to build a reputation of your own too? Do you feel like you’re always waiting in line to be noticed? Here’s the scoop on some oh-so-effective techniques to get rid of the competition and clear a path to the top. Why reinvent the wheel?
When Someone Leaves at 5:30, Ask Why They’re Leaving so Early
You’re willing to stay until midnight and only kiss your family while they’re sleeping, what’s up with slackers sneaking out early? If you’re unwilling to come into the office at o’dark hundred and leave after dark you clearly don’t want it enough, right? Make sure they know you see them leaving in all of their slacking glory. Be sure to make a loud enough comment for others to notice too.
Present Other’s Ideas But Take All the Credit
Sure, someone else on the team may have come up with the initial seed of the idea but really, it’s your master communication skills that will help others buy in. It’s just a presentation choice, using the word “I” instead of “we” or “the team.” Why do the babies on the team keep whining about getting credit? They just need to stay focused on delivering the work while you take care of the PR.
Build a Work plan that Has Impossibly Compressed Timelines
The client wanted the work done yesterday and if people just suck it up and put in the effort, the client will get what they want. Don’t worry about the need to sleep or even worse, vacations. People on the team will just have to adjust their schedules like you’ve done countless times. The customer wants what they want and the team just needs to do it. If someone complains, tell them they need to learn to be customer-centric or get out.
Why stop at with these ideas alone? Looking for some other ideas that clearly pack a powerful punch?
- Make the red pen your best friend.
- Ask a team member to travel across the country for a two-hour meeting.
- Call out people in meetings for their lousy ideas and poor implementation.
- Assign a task and pop by their desk once an hour to ask for updates.
- Be sure to outline every step so the person you’re assigning the task to doesn’t need to think at all.
- Tell employees they did not meet all MBOs so only 10% of bonus payout.
- Shut down questions and dissenting perspectives with an always effective “because I said so!”
- Every time the person you’re targeting makes a suggestion, make your only response “Anyone else have anything to say?”
- When someone tells you that they want to take on more, off load all of your admin on them – it will really free up your time!
- Be very clear that if someone doesn’t like the way things are run, they can always quit.
If you’ve ever thought to yourself, “my boss wants me to quit” maybe they’re using some of these tried and true techniques. However, if you’d rather not fast track it to the top by getting your competition to resign, you can always be the kind of leader that creates a great place to work that makes people want to stay (crazy idea, right!?). If that’s you, maybe you really should read another post… like this one on exceptional leadership.
Anyone else have any secrets to share for fast trackers that are willing to move up at all costs? … Even if it means leaving leadership, connection, relationships, and trust in the dust.
Hey Alli, Sadly I’ve met this person many times in my career. She seems to think she can push her weight around like a boss. He thinks he can intimidate people with his job title. And even sadder, it still happens in the majority of companies.
But to quench her greed, she needs to understand a more collaborative culture will increase that pesky bottom line she so desperately wants in the wake of talent attrition and dwindling market share.
And when he lowers the bar and pushes people even harder, they will leave and he may think he needs to be even tougher on the next batch of victims.
That sounds like a great business strategy for no one but tried by too many.
Kneale, You’re right… all of these ways of bossing others into submission are used in organizations around the world. Maybe it’s lack of role models or just a reflection of organizational culture and values but at some point, the cycle has to stop for the org to continue to grow. Eventually, the only talent they will be able to attract is low-end, no other choice people that have no other choices or had their heads buried in the sand and aren’t aware of the organization’s reputation for treating people like a commodity. You put it so well… such a sad truth.
Thanks for the thought-provoking post Alli!
It is never easy to deal with thought-minded people.
My tactic has been be respected for who you are, look the other person in the eye, stand firm in your “eye of the tiger” mode and let go…
I have depleted energies in trying to meet expectations.
But I find that when others eat you alive we tend to not be ourselves anymore.
Shalom.
I love that, Johann! “Eye of the Tiger” mode. I too have had every ounce of energy and goodwill used up by bosses that held me (and everyone else on the team) to impossible expectations. Still, I’m a tough cookie and didn’t back down from the challenge in most cases and engaged with my peers, the work and other leaders and consistently looked for “bright spots” that came through the connections we built with each other. It’s true, being eaten alive never brings out our best. If only the mangers that live that way realized that there is truly another choice and it’s their’s to make!
Alli, Another tactic is to just ignore the worker. Make them feel like they are unwelcome and don’t belong. Isolate them and keep them in the dark.
That’s a good one, Dan that I’ve seen all too often. It is really painful when you want to be in the loop and contribute and find doors literally and metaphorically shut in your face.
Everything Keale said. One thing I love about this post is the idea that the desire to quit is sometimes actually coming from outside oneself, is actually part of a competitive wish of their boss or coworker. You give some great tactics to look out for and help ” battered” employees keep their eyes on their own work.
Blair, You make a great point. Talk about needed to change the system! A competitive wish on the part of a boss or coworker can quickly transform what would have been a great opportunity into living hell. Sometimes, finding a new perspective is not enough to make us stay through all of the headaches and mind games. Thanks, Blair!
Really nailed it Alli with ways to make people quit! Loved it! For me, the worst thing was when a boss refused to let me do it my way, even though my end result was what was needed. Sometimes, bosses get so bogged down on the specific steps in a process, that they don’t let their employees experiment or let their unique styles come out. Great leaders know that we all approach projects and challenges in our own ways. It is so essential that leaders recognize it doesn’t have to be their way or the highway. All paths welcome. Thanks again!
Terri – Early on in my career I worked for a woman who thought that there was really only one way to do everything… from organizing the columns on a spreadsheet to how many bullet points needed to go on a particular slide. I hated it and I hated working for her. My mistake was thinking that I hated her too until we got caught in a big snowstorm and I could not make it home and slept at her house. We talked about more than the work and I saw her as a person with self-doubt, fears, dreams and desires beyond her perfectionism she was continually projecting on me. I don’t know if she ever let go of her “do this not that” ways but you’re right, ultimately leaders need to realize that my way or the highway simply does not work long term.
Love it: All paths welcome! Yes!
Alli, what a beautiful post. I have met one too many people who are exactly like this during my Corporate years. Is it insecurity that makes them do what they do? I think so. For those at the receiving end, even if you are one of those who don’t quit, there comes a time when you have to part ways because this is not a life you want to create for yourself. Letting go by the recipient is probably one of the best options just for their sanity.
Loved your post. I resonate with it 🙂
Thank you
Lalita
Lalita ~ You raise such a great question… is it insecurity? I agree with you and think that it is. People with confidence are able to trust their team members and empower them to get the job done instead of acting like a dictator. Some people think that they had to live through it so the next generation should too. I’m in the totally opposite school of thought! When I lived through it, I decided to never subject anyone else to such craziness. I don’t suddenly look better by keeping others down. You’ve raised some excellent points and as always, I appreciate your insights!
Great post! These tactics were hard to read Alli – I have a friend who was recently pushed into quitting and it was horrible to watch how she was treated. She was an outstanding leader in the company and lead her team to consistently push past monthly sales goals. Unfortunately her boss was intimidated and wanted her out. It was horrifying how she was demoted and made to feel like an outcast. She was able to get past it and create a far better position with a great company – but she learned some great lessons from these tactics. She learned that no matter what these type of leaders throw at you, you have to decide who you are, who you want to be and continue that decision right into something better. (I think I just would have quit!) 🙂
How awful that your friend was pushed into quitting. It’s an all too common reality for people. I had a friend that was demoted from SVP to VP and taken out of her territory to a smaller role in an effort to get her to quit too… and she stayed. Funny thing is, she was smart, understood the business, and was exceptional at her job and also exceeded targets which made it that much more confusing and demoralizing. She held her head high and decided to leave on her own terms and nobody else’s.
I love the lessons that your friend walked away with ~ know who you are, believe in yourself and there IS something better where your gifts will be welcome and appreciated.
Love the lessons and experiences you bring. So honored you’re sharing them here! Thanks, Karen!
This particular bug is always biting, Ali. It’s hard to ignore the itch of their bite, or those like them, once you’ve ever been bitten.
Another tactic they use is to document the simplest matters that weren’t originally a part of the company’s regulations and restrictions policy. In fact, one employer in the past would build upon the company’s policies after writing me up for some silly indiscretion that didn’t sit well with them personally. I would simply take the bullet and continue to give my best, as well as doing my best to disregard their devious actions. In the end, by having patience with them and playing by the rules as much as possible, I was able to stay on with the company a bit longer than they were permitted. They would ended up getting fired for going against the policy and stealing from the company. While I usually steer clear of celebrating other’s moments of defeat, I cannot say I wasn’t thrilled to see their fall. The greatest revenge in business etiquette is usually karma. It always seems to make its rounds. 🙂
Oh my gosh, Deone! I’ve seen that happen! Like there’s an “incident” and suddenly a new policy pops up. What a story you share! Karma! Absolutely – what goes around comes around.
Love how you can them biting bugs… it’s totally like that. I’ve wished I could slap them away but somehow they keep buzzing in my face and creating an incredibly challenging annoyance.
So appreciate that your sharing here! You’ve added much welcome depth to this post of some of the most shallow behaviors out there.
I call this type of boss an “Entrepreneur Creator”. They often play a key role in pushing people who are just thinking about starting their own business to actually take the plunge and do it. Sociopaths can sometimes play a positive role in our lives, I guess. LOL!
Oh my gosh, you’re so right! For some, it’s like the straw that broke the corporate camel’s back and was just the push they needed to become an entrepreneur! What a great perspective. There can definitely be great outcomes and lessons even from people like this!
I’ve met these “leaders” as well – always working to ensure your life is miserable so that you will leave. Never do they realize that for some they have the ability rise above their petty behavior and overcome.
Jen, You know it! We don’t all quit and cry in the corner… we LEAD when they clearly are not. We persevere and don’t lower our standards of delivering exceptional work because we’re being pushed around.
Hi Alli
A great list of terrible leadership techniques 🙂 As I read this I reflected back on several colleagues and bosses who have used each and every one of them. One of the sneakiest is letting others do all the work while they spend time spinning the PR in their favor . . . ugh!
LaRae
I can’t stand that, LaRae! I can remember working so hard, really enjoying my work and then feeling so annoyed that I was not given any credit for my effort. It was like I was invisible while the person above me took all of “our” great work on the road show ~ like I wouldn’t hear back that my name, and the TEAM never came up once in the conversation. Ugh is right! Thanks for confirming that these tactics show up everywhere.
Alli,
What this post points out, in my opinion, is the mess these actions can leave in someone’s path. Success at all costs does cost, and it does catch up to the leaders and, unfortunately, the companies. False leaders create false success. It may seem successful in the beginning but we know how the stories end. Think Enron. Think Worldcom. Think….
Maybe that is the point. Stop. Think. Lead better!
Thanks! Jon
Jon, Mess puts it mildly! Even when people do seem to get promoted and get kudos for “running a tight ship” I agree with you, it does catch up with them… the leaders and the organizations develop a reputation over time that will hurt long term success. Great examples of why this is more of a systemic problem that just managers with inflated egos bullying their employees into submission. Thanks, Jon!