Bad Bosses Make Good Leaders?

Almost every leader has had a bad boss somewhere along the way – and, you may be surprised to learn that even bad bosses can help make you a good leader. And bonus: they teach you this without you asking them for help. You just have to watch them in action.

Asking for help is not only about saying the words, “I need help”, or even asking questions of any kind. It can also be about observing others – peers, teams, customers, and bosses; about reading; about the full art of ‘defining reality,’ as longtime American Express Chairman and CEO Ken Chenault told me.

It’s certainly about discovering what to do, but also, importantly, about what not to do. 

And for most young leaders, there’s no better source of asking for help in what not to do, than to simply observe the amazing range and creativity in the way bad bosses operate. They are masters of misconduct.

Most of our CG Councils members have good bosses — after all, those bosses support them joining a community where they can grow and develop as product and GM leaders in the digital world.

But, many have had bad bosses in the past and have learned what not to do from them.

For my next book, I interviewed more than 220 leaders — from the CEOs of companies like American Express, Intuit, and Shake Shack to managers, directors, and heads of product at many Internet companies.

Of all the interview questions I asked, the one that elicited the strongest emotional response by far was: "Have you ever had a bad boss?" 

Here are some responses:

? “Absolutely! And I’m proud to say I’m nothing like him.”

? “Oh yeah, for sure”

? “Yes, yes, yes! I think of him everyday and do the opposite of what he would do.” 

? “Oh, sure. I’ll never forget what he ‘taught’ me!”

? “Yeah and he’ll be on my sh*t list until I die”

? “Yeah…. yes….oh yeah” (you could almost hear this person running through their memories of several bad bosses)

? “Yes – my current boss – damn!”

One interviewee had four bad bosses in a row: 

"One was a condescending jerk, one had no trust in anyone, one was bipolar and refused to take his meds, and the last of my bad bosses seemed to be my friend but then would never promote me. It took me a long time to realize he was a bad boss.”

Recently, an academic study was published that explored what I call this "inverse mentor" hypothesis. 

“Our study sheds light on a silver lining, of sorts, for people who are subjected to [bad bosses]...” Professor Taylor, co-author of a study on bad bosses, wrote in the Harvard Business Review, and reiterated with me in a later interview. “Some managers who experience this abuse can reframe their experience so it doesn’t reflect their behavior and actually makes them better leaders,” said Taylor.

There it is: A bad boss can make you a better leader – they can, in fact, be an inverse mentor.

What determines whether a bad boss makes you a bad or good leader?

You, of course.

Bad bosses make jerks jerkier. 

But, if you have moral integrity, if you are a servant leader, if you are not a narcissistic, egotistical, arrogant, know-it-all, then chances are that bad boss will not cloud your judgment. 

Instead, you’ll be proud to not be like them.

- Phil