Qualities of Poor Character and Leadership

Because elected officials are leaders, it is logical to evaluate elected officials with respect to their leadership qualities. SIMPPLR, a consulting firm whose goal is to make a positive impact on society by elevating life at work, has created a blog post titled Bad leadership: 10 traits to avoid — and lessons bad leaders can teach us that is as relevant to government as it is to the business world.

The content below in italics is excerpted and reformatted from the SIMPPLR blog post to make it more relevant to voting for politicians. Readers of Make the World Better: Vote for Character are encouraged to study the full SIMPPLR blog post for an in depth analysis of bad/poor character/leadership.

Good leadership builds comradery, improves focus, increases engagement, and supports collaboration. Bad leadership centers around activities that counter those points. Leadership comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, and bad leadership falls into a few buckets:

  • Self-interest
  • Control
  • Apathy
  • Inability to adapt
  • Lack of emotional intelligence

Here are 10 traits of bad leadership:

#1: Bad leaders lack empathy

Lacking empathy is a sign of bad leadership because it shows a clear disconnect between the leader and their team members. Empathy involves understanding and respecting others’ feelings, and it creates a sense of trust and mutual respect.

Without empathy, leaders will often neglect the feelings and perspectives of others. This has significant consequences, including:

  • Miscommunication: If leaders cannot empathize and understand context in relationships with team members, they are unlikely to be on the same page — resulting in miscommunication and misunderstandings.
  • Mistrust: If empathy builds trust and rapport, a lack of it causes distrust and risks damaging relationships.
  • Lower commitment: Employees are more committed when they feel heard and respected. Lacking empathy can leave employees feeling undervalued and misunderstood, which can decrease their commitment level.
  • Disengaged employees: Empathy shows employees that you care about them and their feelings, so a lack of it can lower morale and focus.

#2: Bad leaders micromanage

Micromanagement is another characteristic of bad leadership because it stunts creativity, adds stress, and shows your team members that you don’t trust their abilities. A leader who micromanages struggles to delegate tasks and wastes resources by focusing too much on the minutiae.

An unwillingness to forfeit control to your team members can have serious effects on you, your employees, and the company, including:

  • Stagnant operations: Micromanagement kills innovation and restricts the employee’s desire to explore, which can leave you with inefficient and outdated business processes.
  • Higher turnover: Many employees want autonomy, especially as they gain more experience within a field. If you’re micromanaging, you’re more likely to push good employees away.
  • Resentment: Team members who do not feel valued or trusted are likely to resent management, which can decrease productivity, commitment and job satisfaction.

#3: Bad leaders communicate poorly

Poor communication plagues most ineffective leaders. Lacking strong communication skills creates major friction between leaders and team members. This common trait of bad leadership manifests in myriad ways, including passive-aggressive communication, failure to listen to feedback, and even radio silence when transparent leadership communication is needed the most. A leader who cannot communicate effectively risks bottlenecks, mistakes and serious harm to the company culture.

A few common consequences of poor communication include:

  • Misunderstandings: Leadership is about guiding team members towards a shared goal, but if you cannot communicate that goal effectively, they cannot work toward it.
  • Added stress: Confusion stresses your team members, impacting their engagement and productivity.
  • Lack of commitment: Employees with clear goals are 3.6 times more committed. If you cannot communicate objectives to your employees, they are going to be less committed.
  • Conflicts: Like any relationship, poor communication can lead to conflict and dissatisfaction.

#4: Bad leaders are egotistical

Ego — not confidence — is a bright red flag for bad leadership. Prioritizing your own interests and viewpoints over your team members can alienate employees and lead to poor decisions without context or perspective.

There are many ways ego and self-interest can stunt an organization’s progress, including:

  • Shut down inclusivity: Diversity and unique perspectives are important team values, and egotistical leaders shut out any competing ideas that differ from their own.
  • Curtail collaboration: Collaborative workplaces are breeding grounds for success and innovation, but leaders who are unwilling to hear other perspectives discourage others from contributing.
  • Break trust: Self-interested motives and decision-making can lead other team members to feel like you don’t trust or value their perspectives.

#5: Bad leaders resist change

Resisting change can be another indication of bad leadership. Whether it’s a reluctance to adopt new and improved technology or ignoring an outdated business process, resisting change can impede progress and leave you behind the curve within your market and industry.

The effects of this poor leadership characteristic include:

  • Inefficiencies: Change is a hallmark of progress, so if your leadership habits are hindering change, it’s likely leading to bottlenecks and inefficiencies within your organization.
  • Frustrated employees: Organizations should want their employees to bring new, progressive ideas to the table, but if leadership is unwilling to change, those employees may become frustrated and disengaged.
  • Lost competitive advantage: Innovation and adaptability are what help businesses evolve and grow. Resisting change can lead to missed opportunities and declining market share.

#6: Bad leaders lack vision or direction

A lack of vision or direction is another example of bad leadership. Leaders, by definition, are meant to guide teams — setting their overarching vision and direction. When leaders lack clear vision, it leads to conflicts and stunts progress.

Some of the main consequences of leaders without vision/direction include:

  • Confusion and uncertainty: Without vision or direction, teams may feel disconnected and unsure if they are meeting expectations.
  • Lack of purpose: People are often motivated by the larger vision and purpose of their role. If that purpose is not clear, it can demotivate your team.
  • Wasted resources: Without a defined goal or vision, team members may waste time, money and other resources on projects that don’t align with the company’s direction.

#7: Bad leaders have a negative mindset

Bad leaders will often fixate on problems, failures and mistakes instead of acknowledging and rewarding successes. This negative mindset can feed a toxic work environment that hurts performance and employee satisfaction.

Negative leaders can impact the organization in many ways, including:

  • Low employee morale: If you are always focused on the negative, your team members are less likely to feel valued and seen.
  • Employees afraid to speak up: When employees feel like their actions are under constant scrutiny, they have less incentive to speak up or innovate.
  • Increased turnover: People work for people, so if they are not feeling valued and are afraid to share their ideas, they are more likely to look for other employment.

#8: Bad leaders are inconsistent

Inconsistency is another common sign of bad leadership. An inconsistent leader is unpredictable and makes erratic decisions, sets unrealistic expectations, and struggles to communicate clearly.

Inconsistent leadership can result in:

Lower productivity: Constantly shifting goals and expectations make it hard for team members to prioritize their activities efficiently, which hurts productivity.

Elevated stress: Imagine working for someone who is constantly moving the goalposts and making impulsive or sudden changes. This type of bad leadership makes teams walk on eggshells.

Lack of unity: Great leaders can unite teams and encourage collaboration, but inconsistent leaders do not allow for the same level of cohesiveness in a group.

#9: Bad leaders lack transparency

This is one of the most alarming signs of bad leadership. Why? Because a leader who lacks transparency can appear dishonest, which risks undermining the trust of the entire team.

A lack of transparency in your leadership style could result in:

  • Distrust: Great relationships are rooted in trust, so without it, collaboration, communication and commitment can break down.
  • Uncertainty: If leaders are not upfront and honest, it can lead to uncertainty and instability in your team members. This feeling can distract and demotivate employees.
  • Lower engagement: A lack of transparency can hide the “why” or purpose behind activities — and without it, employees are less likely to engage with their roles.

#10: Bad leaders are indecisive

Decisiveness is often considered a characteristic of a strong leader, so indecisiveness can have adverse effects. Leaders who are indecisive, or even slow to act, paralyze organizational progress. Decisiveness is more than just making a decision — it requires collecting and comprehending relevant information — and then making the best choice for the organization. An indecisive leader will overcomplicate and stall that process.

The quality of bad leadership can lead to:

  • Bottlenecks: When a leader fails to make a decision, a project can stall, causing a ripple effect of delays throughout the organization.
  • Wasted resources: Time is one of your organization’s most valuable resources, and wasting it with indecisiveness has direct effects on your bottom line. The costs of delays and the opportunity costs add up quickly.
  • Waning confidence: If you’re a leader with a reputation for indecisiveness, you may see your team’s confidence begin to waiver. Employees look to leaders for guidance and direction, and indecisiveness can cause employees to lose faith in your ability to lead.

NOTE TO READERS: There is much to be learned from this SIMPPLR post that can be fruitfully applied to voting for elected leaders. True patriots — even those who are not in business — would do well to study the excerpts above or the full SIMPPLR blog post frequently and use these principles to evaluate their personal character/leadership qualities and the character/leadership qualities of elected officials between election cycles. Readers who are inclined to political activism would also do well to share these principles with other activists and use them as guides for recruiting candidates for office.