1. By RobinBond
Most employeeswanttodo a goodjob. Notall. But most. Theystart outwitha desire tobe a
respectable performer. Some evenwanttobe stars. Theymayhave done great thingsintheirpast
positionsand are excitedaboutthe new opportunitiesbefore them. Theymightbringmanyskillsanda
lotof experience withthem. Yet,innotime at all,theyare anothermiddle-of-the-packtoback-of-the-
pack producer,justannoyingenoughtobe noticed,butnotcrossingthe line soyoucan fire them.
I wouldbe willingtowagerthat nearlyeverymanagerI’ve evermetwhowasdealingwithsomeone who
startedout strong,onlyto fizzle inrecordtime,believesthe employee wasflawed,fooledthemduring
the interview process, andtheymade ahiringmistake. I’ve heardthisverysentimentexpressedmore
timesthanI can count. But I’ve noticed,inmore casesthannot,a greatdeal of the responsibility falls
squarelyonthe shoulderof the employee’smanager…theone whoiscomplainingaboutthem.
Stay withme fora moment. Honestly,Iamnot completelycrazy!
One of the bestbossesI’ve everhadthe opportunitytoworkwithwasa verygiftedleaderandvisionary.
He had the complete package. He wasintelligent,personable,driven,caring,intuitive,transparent,
trustworthy…he hadall the rightskillstosucceedandhe had a track record to prove it. His boss,
however,wasanotherstory. The manhe reportedtowas egotistical,insecure,manipulative,conniving,
underhanded,closed, andtotallyunworthyof trustor respect. Andbecause Mr.Ego wasthreatenedby
my boss,he dideverythinghe couldtohamstringhimandmake himlookbad. As a result,thisgifted,
talented,worthyleaderonlylastedaboutayear andwasn’table to accomplishevenatenthof the
thingshe had achievedinotherorganizations.
It wasn’tforlack of trying. Itwasn’tbecause he didn’thave desire andknowledge. Hisfailure was very
much because of hismanager,Mr. Ego.

2. While thisisa dramaticand possibly extreme example,itdidcause me topause and reflectonhow
oftenwe are responsibleforouremployee’sfailings. Here’swhatIdiscoveredandhere’s prettymuch
all youneedto do to create a stellarunderperformer.
 Getin theirway. Make it hard for themto getanythingdone. Thinkroadblocks. There are
several tacticsyoucan take and here are a few of my suggestions.
o Have frequentunnecessarymeetingswhere youdemandconstantupdatesandpick
apart everythingthe employee isdoing. Thisworksespeciallywellif youtreatthemas if
theyare stupid.
o Micromanage. Every.Detail. Don’tletthemtake a single stepwithoutyouknowing
aboutit and withoutgivingyourapproval. Keepthemunderyourthumb.
o Give thema tightbudget, andthen take it back. Slashit inhalf (orworse),ensuringthey
won’thave the toolsand resourcesnecessarytoaccomplishthe taskathand.
o Start themmovinginone direction,thenchange yourmindandyankthemback,turning
themina completelydifferentdirection,makingall the worktheyhave justcompleted
totallyobsolete.
o Make it nearlyimpossibleforthemtogetrequiredapprovals.
o Withdrawyoursupport. Leave themhanginginthe wind.
o Discourage theirplanof action and dictate theytake a completely differentpaththan
the one theywere excitedlypursuing.
o Undermine theirefforts(youcan’tletthemlooktoogood,afterall,because itmight
make youlookstupid bycomparison).
 Encourage political game-playing. You know the games. Thingslike the blame game. Make
sure everyone hastospendridiculousamountsof time tocovertheirasssotheynevergetany
real workdone. Rewardbrownnosers. Encourage back-stabbing. Pickfavoritesandallowthem
to create an unhealthy, manipulativeenvironment. Withthistype of culture,you’re pretty
much guaranteeingtheirfailure. Theywillsoonbe sodiscouraged,they’ll workhardnotto
standout because theywon’twantto be targetedandbulliedbythose youallow torunamuck.
 Waffle / Lie. Didyoutell the employeetheyhadthe freedomtoexplore certainoptionsonlyto
grow concerneditmightbe a mistake? Justdenyyouevertoldthemitwas okayto go inthat
directiontobeginwith. If yougave themapproval, repudiate it. If youtoldthemtheycould
have certainresources,butyou’re worriedabouthow that decision will be perceived byhigher-
ups,lie. Tell themyounevermade the promise. Theymusthave misunderstood. Make sure
theyknowyourword isworthnothing,thatyou can’t be trusted,andyouare goingto insulate
yourself fromall risk. Won’tbe longbefore theystopasking…andtrying.
 Keepthem slavingover meaninglessprojects. Meaningless,becauseyouknow theywill never
be implemented. Give themsomethingreallydifficultwithatightdeadline. Make themworka
lotof hours. Then,three monthsdownthe road,scrap the entire project. Withoutexplanation.
Give thema newassignmentandrepeatthe above. Afterthe thirdorfourthtime, theyaren’t
goingto put theirheartintoanyassignment, nomatterwhat.
 Don’t deal withproblems. Have an employee (regardlessof level) whoisconstantlygettingin
the way of others,whomouthsoff,won’tcooperate,lies,isnegative,hashorrible
communicationandinterpersonal relationshipskills,won’tshare information,etc.,etc.,etc.?
Justclose your eyes. Don’tuse yourconflictresolutionskillstodeal withthe employee’s

3. unacceptable behavior. Don’tactlike theiractionsare evenaproblem. Letthemdo whatever
theydo uncheckedandunchallenged. Itwon’tbe longuntil yourgoodemployeesstoptryingto
getanythingdone,particularlywhentheyhave todeal withthese landmines.
 Undervalue. If youcontinue toundervalue yourexcited,motivatedworkers,particularlyif you
overvalue those whoare the exactopposite,youcandestroytheirabilitytoachieve inrecord
time. Insteadof valuingthem,favorthe peoplewhocause the mostproblems andaccomplish
the leastinthe workforce. You’ll have alegionof underperformersbefore youcanturnaround
twice.
 Talk about thembehindtheir back. Thisisespeciallyeffective if youtalknegativelyandshare it
withtheirpeers andthose theysupervise. Youwantthe people theyneedtoworkwithand
whose supporttheydesire tosee theminabad light. Thisensuresalack of teamworkand
respectandwill preventalmostall positivemovementinthe organization.
 Make sure they know flaws and failure will not be tolerated. Thiswill require themtohide a
great deal of realityfromyourview,consumingmuchof theiravailable energy. Itwill keep
themfocusedoncoveringtheirerrorsandweaknessesandensure theyquicklybecome risk-
avoidant. Thisworksespeciallywell if youletthemknow theirco-workersare obviouslywithout
flaws,butyoususpecttheyhave quite afew of them. It also promotesgame-playing,whichis
anotherhighlyeffectivetacticImentionedearlier.
 Stop listening. YOU are the boss. You, therefore,know everythingthereistoknow andare far
superiortothose whoworkfor you. So shut themout. Don’t listentotheirideas,thoughts,
opinions,insights,suggestions,orconcerns. Justsmile andnod,thenwalkaway. It’sthe best
wayto get themto stoptheirincessanttalking.
If this describes yourmanagementstyle,itmightbe time totake a longlookinthe mirrorto determine
the role youare playingindemoralizing,demotivating, anddiscouragingyouremployees. Thatis,unless
youreallywantto take great people and create underperforming workers. If that’syourgoal,justkeep
doingwhatyou’re doing,‘cause you’re arock star whenitcomesto destroyingmotivation. Youhave all
the right (wrong) moves!