The Most Terrible Habits Leaders Can Have

Here are the leader traits I looked for to spot the leaders to try and avoid if I could:

Good bosses? I have had my share. In fact, in over 40 years of leadership experience, I’ve had way more great bosses than bad ones. And lots of experience studying leadership traits scattered all over the map.

It’s important to realize that just because someone holds a position of leadership, doesn’t necessarily mean they should. Put another way, not all leaders are created equal. The problem many organizations are suffering from is a recognition problem — they can’t seem to recognize good leaders from bad ones.

Here is my top ten of those traits drawn from my years of experience:

Pompous and arrogant

Perhaps the worst trait I’ve personally observed is ego. We all have an ego, but the ego I’m talking about is the ‘super ego’ that dominates. I’ve found if a leader is really good at what they do, they won’t have to tell others about it.

It’s all about them, isn’t it?

If a leader doesn’t understand the concept of “service above self” they will not engender the trust, confidence, and loyalty of those they lead. Any leader is only as good as his or her team’s desire to be led by them. Real leaders take the blame and give the credit — not…