A Toxic Leader

A Toxic Leader: Toxic leadership is a combination of self-centered attitudes, motivations, and behaviors that have adverse effects on subordinates, the organization, and mission performance. One who has the responsibility of a group of people or an organization and abuses the LEADER-FOLLOWER relationship organizational structures. The one thing that I’ve learned is that we are surrounded by TOXIC LEADERS no matter where we are. This type of leadership can lead to toxic subordinates which continues to recycle in the Army.

In Life we know that the love of money is the root of all evil. If some of our Politicians would go back to basic financial management, consider their constituents for whom they were elected, revisit the reality of good customer service, and management their time more efficiently a lot of situations would change. These are also courses that I feel should be a must to join the Military. If we could get a fresh start with our Politicians like we sometimes do in the Military; it may bring a big change in the way people view congress, senators and even more the President. I feel the American people are treated unfairly while Politicians continue to be paid, get their retirement or better yet get paid the same amount of money once they leave office. When you see the “Republicans and Democrats” go against each other how do that make you feel? Do you think that it’s more about the “House” or the people of America? Americans need to scrutinize Politicians more before electing them into office to see how they act under pressure.

In the Military situations can be challenging and overwhelming. Had it not been for some profound advice given to me by my first line supervisor: “NEVER HAVE YOUR SOLDIERS TO DO ANYTHING THAT YOU WOULDN’T DO YOURSELF”. These words have been a guide in which I have built on throughout my military career and ensuring. I have seen senior leaders that do not abide by the Army values or Army Regulations; so how can they expect their Soldiers to comply? Some leaders have that “DO AS I SAY” mentality and that’s how we end up having “TOXIC LEADERS and SUB-STANDARD” Soldiers. We have leaders who fix the Army Physical Fitness Test, weapons cards, height and weight results, and sleep with Soldiers, put Soldiers/NCO’s in offices when they should be online, promotions, on the spot correction or correct Soldiers, and the list goes on. How can we as leaders become effective when we have “TOXIC LEADERS”? We have leaders who tend to forget how it uses to be as a lower enlisted. We have leaders who take the credit for what others do, we have “SHOW BOAT’ leaders the ones who always have to be seen, the “BROWN NOSE/BLUE FALCON” leaders will kiss up so that they can get golden positions and mess over their fellow peers or try to make their fellow peers look bad in front of others.

As a coach your players often feel that your there to help them on their short comings whether it’s in Basketball, Tennis, Football or swimming. But often players find out that some coaches only think of themselves. “Toxic Leadership” among coaches will make or break a player future. When it comes to coaches if a player do not want to go a college that the coach want them to go to or give them a cut from whatever deal/contract the player gets; some coaches find ways to redirect the scouts attention to another player who will comply with that coach. There’s a lot of unseen talent and/or dreams that are destroyed because of this type of leadership.

Often some parents try to re-live their lives through their children and this can create “TOXIC PARENTING”. If a parent was or wanted to be a beauty queen or in a beauty pageant mothers usually try to push their daughters to do the same, if a father was into sports then they want their sons to follow in their footsteps. Oftentimes when a child tells their parents that they’re a homosexual or lesbian the parents seem to turn their backs on their children instead of accepting their kids. If their children don’t take the career path their parents want them to take then sometimes it’s an issue. As parents we should let our children live their own lives and choose their own career paths.

In closing Leaders should lead; if you’re a “Toxic Leader/Toxic Parent” then you should consider stepping down from whatever position you’re in or take a step back and observe your behavior. Using abusable power can hurt us as a country. It will make people disgruntle and will bring moral down; it will also bring conflict to everyone in the work place.