14/12/2020
Dear Leaders,
I have been speaking to a number of different leaders in forms of meetings, panels, private slack channels and text (yes even text, remember that anonymous text helpline I offered).
The hottest talking points apart from the banned C-word and performance is leadership and leadership styles.
One leadership style I have always despised is the cult of CCF:
Confusion, Chaos and Fear.
There is a particular age range of members of the bad managers club aka CCF club, and they have allowed the tactical and channel-ification of work to hide behind.
Confusion
There are many leaders who actively choose to lead by confusion. Yes, confusion.
Confusion is based on lack of or poor communication. Other traits include hoarding information to protect themselves, make themselves feel indispensable and they make everyone else constantly second guess themselves.
Confusion can mean handling everything on their time vs when it makes sense on others.
Confusion to Chaos
Once the confusion is worked out by individuals or team, they actively create chaos (just like politicians).
Chaos is often created by making changes to projects, to budgets, to headcount, and ‘shuffling the pack’ as there was a ‘bad egg’ or someone just wasn’t at the level they wanted. Chaos is a way to control situations for weak managers, anyone who decides to use confusion or chaos as tactics to lead are not leaders.
Chaos To Create Fear
Once chaos works, they create fear around themselves and then the deliverables that have to complete. Fear is often inherited by rank or title but can be leveraged in situations to create uncomfortable working environments and deliberately build a horrible working environment for everyone in and around your team or department.
These managers have learnt these behaviours and believe this is the way to take control vs building the right team and environment to hit targets and develop their team. It takes a while for businesses to gain enough insight into this or takes a few brave individuals to come forward and address with the company.
Management styles shape company cultures, do not allow these behaviours to shape your organisation.
If you are in the position to, I recommend reviewing your management roster and see how they manage their team or department and if you are a manager and believe you have adapted this, I would highly recommend addressing this ASAP.
This week focus on improving your layers of management, remove this selfish and ignorant style of management and reduce the level of the stress by clearly and proactively calling out these behaviours.
Have a great week ahead,
Thanks,
Danny