**Names and genders have been changed to protect their privacy**
“Absolutely! I find that whenever I am mean and tough I got more done. People were quick to do what I asked them to do and get it right. Especially in my position, the higher you go the thinner the air and the tighter the competition to survive. Ironically it’s full of sharks and the first sight on blood they will attack. I am female, being nice is the quickest way to be taken a fool of and run laps around.”
Ameera, CEO (FMGC).
“I don’t like mean people but any given day, I’d rather be the mean one than be a pushover.”
Anna, Midlevel Manager (Banking)
“A commonly believed truth but in my experience you catch more flies with honey than vinegar.”
Manasseh, Auditor (Auditing firm)
“I personally wouldn’t want to work with mean people, nor would I ever develop a good relationship with them. But this is business and sometimes you work with people you don’t like sometimes.”
Tim (Self-employed Consultant)
“It really depends on who the leader is. Some people really carry the persona well and people love them for it. Others just end up being hated and get nothing done”
Fatima, MD (FMGC)
“You can’t be friends with your employees. It’s leadership, not friendship. Both paths have pros and cons so just use whatever gets the job done with least amount of harm.”
Andrew, Entrepreneur
“There could be some truth to it. Look around, how many leaders do you see that are future Mother Teresas? And how many Mother Teresas are leading fortune 500 companies? There you have it.”
Winnie, (Store Sales Rep)
My 2 cents:
Your success in leadership shouldn’t require you to use force and brutes to get your point across. In fact, a good manager doesn’t have to be mean and rude but a mean and rude manager will never be good. You do need a firm grasp on your people but not so tight that the team is suffocated and slips away. How do we become successful leaders without resulting to being mean and rude?
- Define values: Values like trustworthiness, honesty, excellence and integrity are greatly valued in leadership. Having defined values will guide you on how to approach and respond to anything you encounter in the workplace. It’ll shape the place in which you operate in by creating equal standards for everyone to judge their own performance on.
- Sync behavior: When leaders set the tone, good or bad, other follow. With defined and understood values guiding your performance (at home and at work) the team will sync up to your behavior as well and in turn the triggers that set you on the path to be rude towards your colleagues will disappear.
- Stay true to yourself: If you’re a good manager looking to be better, learn and adapt these ways. Do it for yourself and the people you lead. People want to improve and look up to our leaders to show the way. Equally as important, if you aren’t passionate about leadership and performance culture, be true to your nature. Leadership is for people who enjoy coaching, training and relationship building. If you do not enjoy the above, then it is simply not for you. find what is and employ your talents there.