Episode 86 | The Brutal Behaviors of Toxic Bosses

Episode Notes:

Dr. Laura explores more on the subject of toxic bosses, a topic she is passionate about researching for the benefit of people suffering under one. In this episode, she explains some of the defining and brutal behaviors of a toxic boss. Since a toxic boss can be anyone from a first-time manager to a CEO, it’s the psychological and physical health damage they cause to people working under them that makes them toxic. Understanding their behavior will help people to identify a toxic boss and, ideally, leave their sphere of control.

There are fourteen categories of behaviors that Dr. Laura and her research assistant, Renee Pye, have learned through their study. Toxic bosses have many different ways of presenting themselves. Dr. Laura addresses three types of behavior in detail today: 1. Control and micromanagement, 2. Power dynamics and favoritism, and 3. Self-serving and exploitative behavior. She describes each set of behaviors in detail, addressing how the toxic boss comes across and the damage they inflict. The more information Dr. Laura uncovers and shares about toxic bosses, the sooner people struggling under them can see warning signs and get help to navigate the situation.

“The only way to know if a leader is a great leader, a mediocre leader, or a toxic leader, is to find out from the people that report to him or her. So with that said, I think that whether the leader is controlling and micromanaging, whether they’re creating power dynamics and divides in their team, or whether they’re self-serving and exploiting others, all of these things are brutal behaviors and are causing a lot of harm to people.”  Dr. Laura

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