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Beginning on April 25, 2014, in a cost-cutting move, Flint, Michigan, switched its water source from Detroit’s water system to the Flint River.
Melissa Denchak, in a post for the National Resources Defense Council, states “Inadequate treatment and testing of the water resulted in a series of major water quality and health issues for Flint residents — issues that were chronically ignored, overlooked and discounted by government officials even as complaints mounted that the foul-smelling, discolored, and off-tasting water piped into Flint homes for 18 months was causing skin rashes, hair loss and itchy skin.”
The Michigan Civil Rights Commission, a state-established body, concluded that the poor governmental response to the Flint crisis was a “result of systemic racism.”
Later studies would reveal that the contaminated water also contributed to a doubling — and in some cases, tripling — of the incidence of elevated blood lead levels in the city’s children, imperiling the health of its youngest generation.”
The bottom line is that water, which needs to be pure to support life properly, was deemed toxic in this case, which, in turn, caused significant damage to the health of many of Flint’s citizens.
In the same way toxic water can ruin a person’s health, toxicity in any organization can inflict significant damage psychologically, emotionally, economically, financially and even physically.
According to research published in Health Psychology Research, “Toxic leadership can be defined as a pattern of behaviors that are not only harmful but also encourage leaders to pursue their own personal objectives and benefits at the expense of the interests of their team members and the organization as a whole. The damaging behavior of leaders in the workplace has the potential to trickle down to lower-level personnel in the organization.”
Toxic leadership behaviors
A quick search of “toxic leadership” using Google’s Generative AI revealed the following common categories:
1. Abuse of power
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- Bullying and intimidation: Using fear, intimidation or accusatory tactics to control employees, belittling them, or making them feel afraid to speak up.
- Harassment and discrimination: Engaging in discriminatory or harassing behaviors based on gender, race, age, or other protected characteristics.
- The need to be right: Defensiveness, unwillingness to admit mistakes or ‘better’ courses of action and a “My way or the highway” mentality.
- Unethical or illegal behavior: Engaging in actions that are unethical, illegal, or harmful to the organization or its employees.
- Physical aggression: Behavior that threatens or causes physical harm to another.
- Sexually inappropriate behavior: Refers to a variety of behaviors, including obscene gesturing, touching or hugging another person, exposing body parts, disrobing and more.
2. Lack of transparency and honesty
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- Withholding information: Keeping crucial information from team members, making decisions behind closed doors, and avoiding open discussions.
- Deception and manipulation: Lying, distorting facts, or manipulating others to achieve personal goals.
- Lack of accountability: Failing to take responsibility for mistakes or failures and instead blaming others.
3. Micromanaging and lack of trust:
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- Excessive control: Constantly monitoring and controlling every aspect of employees’ work, showing a lack of trust in their abilities.
- Inflexibility: Being unwilling to adapt to changing circumstances or to consider different perspectives.
- Insensitivity: A thorough lack of understanding of or a callous ignoring of others’ feelings, which can in turn cause emotional distress.
- Resistance to feedback: Rejecting or dismissing constructive criticism, viewing it as a personal attack.
4. Favoritism, nepotism, misogyny and sexism
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- Definition of nepotism: “The act of using your power or influence to get good jobs or unfair advantages for members of your own family.”
- Definition of misogyny: Feelings of hating women, or the belief that men are much better than women.
- Definition of sexism: Actions based on the belief that the members of one sex are less intelligent, able, skillful, etc. than the members of the other sex, especially that women are less able than men.
- Playing favorites: Showing preferential treatment to certain employees based on personal relationships or biases.
- Discrimination: Treating employees differently based on gender, race, age, or other factors.
- Lack of inclusion: Failing to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all employees.
5. Narcissistic and authoritarian leadership
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- Definition of narcissism: “Too much interest in and admiration for your own physical appearance and/or your own abilities.”
- Definition of authoritarian: “Demanding that people obey completely and refusing to allow them freedom to act as they wish.”
- Self-centeredness: Focusing on personal gain and recognition rather than the needs of the team or organization.
- Lack of empathy: Showing little concern for the well-being and needs of team members.
- Suppression of dissent: Discouraging or punishing employees who express different opinions or challenge the leader’s decisions.
What do you do when confronted by abusive or toxic leadership?
To begin, there is a need to differentiate between “inept” and toxic. While the phrase “You can’t fix stupid” applies to some leaders, others can be approached and even encouraged to get training that may help their leadership.
One of the ironies in contemporary business management is the Peter Principle, defined on Indeed as:
“The Peter Principle is a human resource theory. The overall concept of his theory is that people within an organization are promoted until they reach a level at which they are incompetent.
“As a result of incompetence in their latest position, the person is not promoted further. The theoretical result of the Peter Principle in organizations is that, eventually, every position is held by someone who was not competent to hold it.”
Others are simply placed in a management role to get them out of the way so they cannot do any more harm to a company. Although these types of “leaders” can damage a company and culture, they are more often than not simply inept, not “toxic.”
I have worked under a few toxic leaders over the years, and the result was always the same: a distinct desire to stay out of their way. This result can be a massive detriment to the culture and productivity in any organization.
We need look no further than the recent leadership issues at the National Association of Realtors (NAR) to see the effects that toxic leadership can have, not just on an organization but on an entire industry.
In an August 2023 Inman article, “Agents: Kenny Parcell’s resignation is the ‘beginning’ of fixing NAR,” staff writers Lillian Dickerson and Marian McPherson quoted Compass’ Jason Haber: “The toxic culture existed at NAR before Kenny [Parcell, former NAR President] arrived, and it will be there after he departs until wholesale changes are made,” he said.
No one wants to collaborate with a boss who exhibits toxic behaviors.
And if the boss is toxic, you can guess the overall team or company culture will also be toxic.
5 steps to take
So, what recourse do you have?
Here are five suggestions:
1. Leave
It is the most obvious choice, and in many ways, is the easiest. It has been well documented that people leave bosses, not companies. This can also be the most challenging choice if no immediate replacement positions are available with other companies or teams.
An important fact to remember is that, in many cases, a “structure” has been built around a toxic leader that comes with “No Talk” rules.
This is defined as a dysfunctional system that demands that no one involved tell the truth to outsiders and never address the issue with their abuser. Everyone knows there is a problem, but an avoidance system has been established so that no one speaks out.
In these cases, if someone is bold enough to speak the truth out loud, they become the problem instead of the person who exhibits the toxic behavior. Instead of continuing in this environment and seeking to institute changes, some find it easier to leave and look for a healthier workplace.
2. Establish clear boundaries
Toxic behavior is frequently permitted because no one in the organization is willing to institute healthy boundaries. Dr. Henry Cloud, in his watershed book, Boundaries, provides three steps in establishing boundaries:
- Step 1: Acknowledge the feelings. Stay calm and respond professionally. State, as clearly as possible, your understanding of the other person’s position. For example, if they erupt in abusive shouting, communicate to them that you understand how frustrating any situation might be and why they might choose to respond the way they do.
- Step 2: Having acknowledged that you understand why they act the way they do, frame a short sentence communicating your boundaries. For example, “I understand that this situation is frustrating and that your response is to shout in anger; However, shouting and swearing at me is not a response I will tolerate.”
- Step 3: Offer alternatives to their behavior, such as “I will let you cool down a bit and then come back so we can discuss this situation calmly and reasonably.”
It’s essential to understand that not everyone will respond well to this, and, in fact, this may lead to you leaving the organization or, in the worst case, getting fired. Either way, you will be out from under the toxicity and free to relocate to a healthier environment.
3. Document everything
Keep a record of all interactions, including details concerning the issue, dates, and times, and note any impact the toxic behavior has on your performance. With a detailed journal of toxic activities in hand, go to the applicable supervisor or an HR professional.
If the behavior includes illegal activity or sexual innuendo, then law enforcement should be contacted. Always check with HR for the best path forward.
4. Build a support network
Chances are that others are experiencing the same behaviors. If everyone affected responds in the same way, you will likely have a higher chance of seeing change in the environment. Additionally, other team members can provide emotional support and advice to cope effectively with the situation.
5. Stay healthy
First, remember that the toxic environment is not your fault. Those providing the toxicity have problems and are acting out inappropriately. Do what you need to do to stay healthy and maintain your self-respect, including obtaining professional counseling if you struggle to cope. You cannot let others’ behaviors define your self-worth.
13 tactics for dealing with a toxic boss
In researching this post, I uncovered another resource that I believe can be extremely helpful. Forbes Human Resources Council has published a post entitled, 13 effective tactics for dealing with a toxic boss. They assume that leaving may not be an option, and so 13 members of the Council share potential methods of dealing with toxicity while keeping drama to a minimum. Although I recommend you read the post in its entirety, the steps include the following:
- Seek clarity
- Do your job, and drop your ego
- Assume positive intent, and provide feedback
- Try to have a candid conversation
- Start by assessing your own values
- Learn and adapt
- Become a trusted partner
- Focus on helping, not judging
- Don’t take it personally
- Control your reactions
- Set boundaries
- Avoid them as much as possible
- Document, document, document
Step No. 13 is especially poignant. Charles Ashworth explains, “When working with a toxic boss, stay focused on doing an amazing job and document, document, document. Always follow up with written communication confirming expectations set by the toxic boss. Leverage data to support your decisions. If you find the stress in the toxic situation is increasing, it may be time to move on or bring it to the attention of those who will address it.”
Your health is too important to allow it to be continuously exposed to toxicity. In the case of Flint’s water management issues, changes were made once the problem was identified. Unfortunately, the delays in getting the required proof caused significant damage to many of the residents.
If you are in a toxic environment, act quickly to establish boundaries and seek proactive solutions before substantial damage occurs.
Carl Medford is the CEO of The Medford Team.
