10 Spooky Leadership Tales

Bad Examples of Managers and Leaders to Horrify You

In our work, we spend our time helping organizations train and develop exemplary leaders and teams. But almost everyone, it seems, has a story about working with or for a dysfunctional teammate. In honor of all hallows-eve, we’re rattling the chains on the leadership and manager cautionary tales that you don’t want to see trick or treating around the office, or your next Zoom meeting.

Can you relate to these spooky leaders or managers?

1. The Ghost: Does your manager give you a project and never check back in? Disappear when you need support or clarification? Yep, you just got ghosted.
2. The Mummy: This micromanaging leader just might be out to get you — they just won’t leave you alone, no matter how great of a job you think you’ve done.
3. The Vampire: Let's face it. This is the leader who sucks the life and passion right out of you.
4. The Zombie: This manager or supervisor is constantly taking your ideas and passing them off for their own.
5. The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: This leader says one thing and does another, leaving you confused and feeling like you’re always one step behind on what’s going on.
6. The Werewolf: This mercurial leader sends you emails at midnight and during the full moon, leaving you to wonder when or if you should be responding.
7. The Mad Scientist: Just when you think you’re going to leave work on time, this manager swoops in with an idea and last-minute deadline.
8. The Jack O’Lantern: This manager does nothing. Sometimes you even wonder what they DO all day.
9. The Witch or Warlock: You get it — this manager is mean.
10. The Candy Corn: This manager is sweet. Too sweet! They will probably give you cavities (or maybe undermine you around the office.)

Do you have a manager or leader horror story archetype to share? We certainly enjoyed playing with this idea as a fun concept on the blog, but we also know that troublesome or under-trained managers and leaders are no laughing matter. Many of these stories are inspired by common manager and leader pitfalls that can be remedied with the right development!

We’re committed to helping you drive your workforce out of a leadership rut, develop today and tomorrow’s future leaders, and increase engagement and the success of your teams. How can we help you? Let us know your leadership challenges and we’ll be happy to work with you to develop your workforce.