---
title: Mean, micromanaging bosses are ineffective and outdated
description: We asked you about your bad bosses and, oof, you delivered. Bad bosses often learn from others, creating a trickle-down toxic culture.
---

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# [Mean, micromanaging bosses are ineffective and outdated](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/01172022-bad-bosses)

 Written by [Juliet Bennett Rylah](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/author/juliet-bennett-rylah) | Jan 20, 2022 1:05:23 AM

We recently asked readers if they’d ever quit a job over a bad boss.

We received 278 responses. From our check-all-that-applied list, top reasons for leaving included:

Other common themes included bosses who ignored covid protocols, threw things, stole ideas, and demanded to know about bathroom breaks. 

#### **And then there were these stories (edited for clarity and brevity): **

- *The COO was my boss. He brought baby food jars and pacifiers into meetings “since we were all babies.” *
- *My boss would camp out by my car after work and ask me to come back in and talk. *
- *She critiqued everything I did from my writing to my presentation skills, to what I did in my personal life. She was so toxic that I went to bed crying every night.*
- *I was given a no-call, no-show for the day of my mother’s funeral. *
- *He reprimanded the team for leaving town for safety during Hurricane Irma in 2017. *
- *Our founder did not hesitate to yell at you or demean you in front of others. I remember getting berated once because one of my PowerPoint slides was pixelated. I felt like a pledge being hazed in a college fraternity. *

#### **Where do bad bosses come from? **

Manuela Priesemuth, PhD, is an associate professor of management at Villanova University, and tells *The Hustle* that abusive behavior is often learned. 

It trickles down from bosses to new hires who eventually practice what they endured — similar to the way children learn social behaviors from parents. 

But while business cultures once prized “tough love” as a motivator, [research shows](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5982074/) it doesn’t work. 

“It actually demotivates people,” Priesemuth says. “It destroys people. It creates anxiety, emotional exhaustion, and distress.”

A 2021 Australian study [found](https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/a-toxic-workplace-triples-your-risk-of-depression-new-study-finds.html) toxic workplaces tripled the risk of depression. Priesemuth’s own [research](https://leeds-faculty.colorado.edu/dahe7472/priesemuth%201513.full.pdf) found it hinders teamwork. 

#### **It also hurt companies **

An SHRM study [found](https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/employee-relations/pages/toxic-workplace-culture-report.aspx?_ga=2.69495768.990523053.1597083312-230458979.1597083312&_gac=1.250042740.1594404459.Cj0KCQjwo6D4BRDgARIsAA6uN1-fOEmvxPtUxfoNItrGCytLBlKT1mfjpuymQtmwTNx7aRvMpA-TUeoaAtQCEALw_wcB) bad managers cost companies $223B in turnover between 2014 and 2019. 

Other costs include lost productivity or destructive behaviors among employees — like taking [fake sick days](https://www.onlinemba.com/blog/cost-of-bad-boss/). 

Companies also risk losing clients and customers if abuse is exposed. 

#### **What should you do if you have a bad boss? **

If you hear a lot of “that’s just how it is around here,” Priesemuth says you may be in a toxic culture, which is hard to change. 

But if you like the company, you could try HR. Priesemuth admits it’s not always easy and complaints can take a long time, but some key steps include: 

- Documenting incidents, including emails and recorded virtual meetings
- Finding witnesses and allies — abusers often have multiple victims
- Looking for other executives or supervisors to talk to

The maybe-silver lining? [Few bosses](https://hbr.org/2020/06/times-up-for-toxic-workplaces) are actually psychopaths. 

“We are only the recipient of that type of bad behavior, but a lot of times, something triggers [abusive bosses],” Priesemuth says. “So perhaps it’s worth it to understand the antecedent to that behavior if we want to create a better workplace.”**More:** Priesemuth shares more on how abusive bosses harm themselves [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4Q-x2_cc6o).

[View full post](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/01172022-bad-bosses)

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