Great leadership drives success, fosters growth, and builds a thriving workplace culture. However, bad management can be just as influential—except in all the wrong ways. If you want to know what NOT to do as a manager, take a look at these 12 surefire ways to fail. Learn from the worst so you can become the best.

1. Keep Staffing Levels Critically Low

Overworking employees by maintaining skeleton crews may seem like a cost-saving strategy, but it quickly leads to burnout, decreased productivity, and high turnover. Employees who feel overwhelmed and unsupported are more likely to disengage from their work, leading to poor performance and increased absenteeism.

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How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Ensure adequate staffing levels to meet business needs.
• Regularly assess workloads and redistribute tasks where needed.
• Offer overtime compensation or hire temporary staff during peak periods.

2. Maintain an Atmosphere of Crisis

Thriving on constant emergencies and last-minute deadlines might make you feel like a high-stakes leader, but it only creates stress and chaos. Employees will quickly burn out if they’re constantly forced to operate in a high-pressure environment.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Implement clear processes and realistic deadlines.
• Prioritize long-term planning over reactive decision-making.
• Encourage a balanced work environment where employees feel supported rather than pressured.

3. Prioritize All Tasks and Projects Equally

When everything is a priority, nothing is. If you demand that every task be completed with equal urgency, your team will struggle to differentiate between critical objectives and less important duties, leading to confusion and inefficiency.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Use clear prioritization frameworks, such as the Eisenhower Matrix.
• Define urgent vs. important tasks and communicate these priorities effectively.
• Empower employees to focus on high-impact work rather than wasting energy on low-value tasks.

4. Define "Opportunities" as Additional Work

If your idea of career development is simply giving employees more work without additional support, recognition, or compensation, expect resentment to grow. Overloading top performers while underutilizing others will cause frustration and disengagement.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Offer professional development opportunities beyond just an increased workload.
• Recognize and reward employees for their efforts.
• Ensure workloads remain fair and balanced across the team.

5. Criticism Must Be Public to Be Effective

Calling out employees in front of their peers doesn’t drive improvement—it breeds resentment, fear, and low morale. Public humiliation erodes trust and creates a toxic workplace culture.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Provide constructive feedback in private meetings.
• Focus on solutions rather than punishment.
• Foster an environment where mistakes are seen as learning opportunities.

6. Insist on Skill-Sharing and Cross-Training Without Allocating Time

Cross-training is beneficial, but if employees are expected to take on new responsibilities without time to properly learn, it results in frustration, errors, and a lack of engagement.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Dedicate time for proper training and mentorship.
• Set clear expectations for learning new skills.
• Provide hands-on learning opportunities instead of overwhelming employees with additional work.

7. Lavish Praise on Minor Accomplishments

Over-the-top recognition for trivial tasks makes genuine achievements feel meaningless. When praise becomes excessive or insincere, employees will stop valuing it.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Provide meaningful recognition that aligns with effort and impact.
• Celebrate achievements in a way that motivates employees.
• Balance praise with constructive feedback.

8. Create a "Culture of Meetings"

Nothing drains productivity more than endless, unproductive meetings. If employees spend more time in conference rooms than actually doing their work, inefficiency will skyrocket.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Limit meetings to necessary discussions.
• Use concise agendas and stick to them.
• Encourage alternatives like email updates or quick stand-up meetings.

9. Silently Live by the Motto, "No Policy is the Best Policy"

Failing to establish clear guidelines leads to inconsistency, confusion, and frustration among employees. Without structured policies, teams will struggle with misaligned expectations.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Establish clear policies on workflows, conflict resolution, and employee expectations.
• Communicate policies effectively and review them regularly.
• Be flexible but provide structure where necessary.

10. Reward High Performers with More Work (and No Extra Benefits)

Punishing success by piling on more responsibilities while others continue underperforming is a surefire way to demotivate your top talent.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Recognize and reward hard work with incentives, not just additional workload.
• Ensure fair workload distribution.
• Offer promotions, bonuses, or professional growth opportunities.

11. Keep the Rumor Mill Busy by Withholding Information

Lack of transparency breeds gossip, uncertainty, and distrust. If employees feel like they’re left in the dark, speculation will fill the void, often leading to misinformation and workplace tension.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Keep communication open and honest.
• Share company objectives and updates regularly.
• Address rumors swiftly and directly to prevent misinformation.

12. Build Dysfunctional Teams by Pairing Motivated Employees with Underachievers

Forcing highly motivated employees to compensate for unmotivated or underperforming colleagues breeds resentment and frustration. It demoralizes high performers and enables mediocrity.

How to Avoid This Mistake:

• Hold all team members accountable for their contributions.
• Provide additional support and training to struggling employees rather than shifting the burden onto top performers.
• Encourage collaboration but ensure fairness in workload distribution.

Final Thoughts: Be a Leader, Not a Liability

Bad management can tank productivity, morale, and even business success. If you recognize any of these 12 habits in your leadership style, it’s time to rethink your approach. Great management is about fostering a supportive, structured, and empowering workplace where employees can thrive. Avoid these mistakes, and instead, focus on clear communication, fairness, recognition, and growth opportunities for your team.

By learning from the worst, you can become the best. Start leading with intention today!