Article by Roy Lubit (Chapter 5, pg 117) Presentation by: Quenest Harrington

1. The Tyranny of Toxic Managers:Applying Emotional Intelligenceto Deal with Difficult Personalities Article by Roy Lubit (Chapter 5, pg 117) Presentation by: Quenest Harrington

2. Background of the Author • Roy Lubit • Psychiatry Degree from Yale, Ph.D. from Harvard (dissertation over organizational learning) • Conducted Research at Columbia Business School • Previously taught emotionalintelligence and organizational behavior at the Zicklin School of Business in New York

3. Background of the Author (cont.) • Currently a Psychiatrist living in New York • He coaches business professionals (particularly those with difficult personalities) on developing their emotional intelligence • First Book was titled “Coping with Toxic Managers and Subordinates: Using Emotional Intelligence to Survive and Prosper” • His second book is titled “Transforming Toxic Organizational Dynamics”

4. Overview of Article • The theme of the article is to discuss the definition of what toxic behaviors are and how to identify them; to classify the various types of toxic managers; to design an intervention to target these behaviors; and to learn how to more effectively control your emotions and behavior in order to deal with these toxic behaviors.

5. 4 Typesof Toxic Managers • Narcissistic • Aggressive • Rigid • Impaired

6. Type #1: Narcissistic • Key Words: Arrogant, Low Self-Esteem, Limited Conscience, Inconsiderate • Preoccupied with their importance • They devalue & exploit others • “Legends in their own minds” • Those with “learned” narcissism aren’t as bad as those who’ve had the trait since childhood • Behavior stems from low self-esteem and trying to fill that void

7. Varieties of Narcissistic Managers • Grandiose: Psychodynamic • Exploits & devalues others, enraged if self-esteem is threatened. • Grandiose: Learned • Inconsiderate due to never receiving feedback on behavior • Survival tactics: Show admiration, avoid criticizing them, outshine them, don’t take it personal, look for open positions • Control Freak • Micromanages, seeks control of everything, devaluation of others’ abilities, fear of chaos • Survival tactics: Avoid direct suggestions, let them think they’re right • Antisocial • Takes what they want, lies and hurts others in order to get ahead • Survival tactic: Avoid provoking them, seek allies in co-workers, transfer, don’t get dragged into their illegal activities

8. Type #2: Aggressive • Key Words: Frantic, irritable, intense • Unable to regulate the intensity of their feelings • View their aggressive behaviors as “self-defense” • Usually clueless on the impact of their behavior on others • View themselves as the true victim • Worse cases have underlying narcissistic personality traits

9. Example • In his article “How to (and how not to) assess the integrity of managers” Robert Kaiser (2010) mentions the criminal acts that brought down Enron and Tyco as evidence of how some people in power positions don’t always do the right thing. • These actions display a lack of integrity: “Lying, cheating, and stealing represent attempts to advance one’s self-interest while ignoring the rights of other people.” (Kaiser, 2010) • The lack of remorse and ruthless behavior would likely make the people in question a mixture of Narcissistic and Aggressive

10. Varieties of Aggressive Managers • Frantic • Hyper and pressured • Survival tactics: Help them see their hyper pace is inefficient • Irritable • Has a hard time monitoring their stress level, highly reactive • Survival tactics: Avoid pushing their buttons, provide support, evaluate for depression • Narcissistic • Fragile self-esteem leads to anger if self-esteem is challenged • Survival tactics: Don’t criticize, show deference • Ruthless • Goes after what they want • Survival tactics: Watch your back • Bully • Seeks to intimidate for excitement’s sake • Survival tactics: stay out of the way, don’t let them see you’re intimidated

11. Type #3: Rigid • Key Words: Bossy, authoritarian • Must do things their way, the “best” way • Fear of being wrong • Don’t see their behavior violates others rights • Feel constantly threatened, must “defend” themselves

12. Varieties of Rigid Managers • Compulsive • Their way is the only way • Survival tactics: Show them respectable alternate ways of doing things, avoid arguing • Authoritarian • The boss is always right • Survival tactics: Show them a respectable boss who does things differently • Oppositional • People are trying to dominate them so they must speak up • Survival tactics: Let them feel like a part of the decision making • Passive Aggressive • People are trying to dominate them and they can’t speak up • Survival tactics: encourage their participation • Narcissistic • Knows better than anyone else • Survival tactics: Feed their ego, explain how your ideas work with theirs

13. Type #4: Impaired • Key words: Anxiety, depression, A.D.D. • These managers have genuine, treatable yet undiagnosed conditions • Conditions include: depression, anxiety, Attention Deficit Disorder, alcohol abuse, burnout • Usually not recognized and therefore not treated • These disorders often mimic the personality disorders we discussed

14. Varieties of Impaired Managers • ADHD • Easily distracted, interrupts others, disorganized, talks incessantly • Anxiety • Fearful-generally or with a focus • PTSD • Preoccupied, emotionally numb, withdrawn, jumpy, fearful, irritable • Depression • Low interest/energy, worrisome, pessimistic • Burnout • Overwhelmed, loss of interest/motivation • Alcohol Abuse • Often late/absent, declining performance • SURVIVAL TACTIC: Get them treatment

15. EmotionalStability • Study done on project managers in the United States Department of Defense • Results: Emotional Stability is a good predictor of project success. Some characteristics associated with this trait include optimism, confidence, clear thinking and being stable (Thal, 2010) • The managers with the aforementioned personality traits aren’t as stable as a more level headed person • Detrimental to their work (intervention is needed)

16. How to deal: Intervention • Interventions should take into consideration what is behind the difficult behavior versus what is on the surface • “The better you understand how other people view the world and what motivates them, the better you will be able to influence their behavior” • Senior management needs to know why someone is performing poorly. You shouldn’t fire someone who has potential and you shouldn’t keep someone who continues making the same mistakes.

17. How to deal: Intervention • These extreme personality traits aren’t necessarily “bad” things, they just aren’t being properly managed by the individual • For example, someone who is extremely detailed would be a good project manager but the excess of this would be a micromanager. This is an example of a strength being overused, which, in turn, makes it a weakness (Kaiser, 2011)

18. How to deal: “Up” your Emotional Intelligence • Emotional intelligence is key to understanding others, resolving conflicts, and gaining influence on others • It helps you to deal with the emotional instability of others • Lastly, it enables those in higher positions to easily spots subordinates with “toxic” qualities

19. Self Awareness • Self-awareness is described as 'a continuous and evolving process of getting to know who you are' • Although humans possess awareness of self, this ability can be explored and developed to improve communication skills. (Timmons 2011)

20. The Two Components of Emotional Intelligence • Personal Competence • Social Competence

21. Component #1: Personal Competence • The ability to understand your feelings, strengths and weaknesses • The skill of how to manage those feelings • Example: being able to control your anger in upsetting situations

22. Keys to Developing your Personal Competence • 1) Paying attention to your emotional reactions to situations • 2 ) Enhancing your understanding of why you react as you do • 3 ) Thinking of alternate ways to interpret upsetting situations • 4 ) Finding constructive ways to deal with whatever emotional stress you have left

23. Component #2: Social Competence • The ability to understand what others are feeling • The skill to work effectively with others

24. Keys to Developing you Social Competence • 1 ) Paying attention to the emotions/behavior of others • 2 ) Seeing to understand others’ behavior through reflection and discussions with third parties • 3 ) Thinking of various ways to deal with situations • 4 )Observing the effects of your actions

25. How to Deal: Decode Work Styles • Keys factors to observe when deciding on positions for potential employees • Familiarity with the classifications of work styles can help one understand the people they work with by providing some structure on how the person is viewed

26. Work Styles Model • Introverts • Detail-Oriented • Task-Oriented • Emotional Intelligence • Planners • Self-Centered • Conservative • Initiative • Conscientious • Strong Conscience and Moral Values • Extroverts • Big Picture • People-Oriented • Limited Social Skills • Spontaneous • Group-Oriented • Imaginative • Followers • Unreliable • Machiavellian Attitude

27. Summary • Toxic managers (and employees) are in all walks of life. It’s something everyone will have to deal with at some point in time. Knowing how to deal with the various personality types of people is what separates the good managers from the great ones. It’s important to educate yourself on your emotional intelligence to better your relationships with your toxic co-workers/bosses, as well as your non-toxic ones.

28. References • Emmerling, R., (2010). Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organizations. http://www.eiconsortium.org/members/lubit.htm • Kaiser, R.B., & Hogan, R. (2010). How to (and how not to) assess the integrity of managers. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 62 (4), 216-217. • Kaiser, R.B., & Overfield, D. V. (2011). Strengths, strengths overused, and lopsided leadership. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 63 (2),91. • Lubit, R. (2004). The tyranny of toxic managers: applying emotional intelligence to deal with difficult personalities. Ivey Business Journal Online, 68 (4). • Thal, A. E., & Bedingfield, J.D. (2010). Successful project managers: an exploratory study into the impact of personality. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management,22 (2), 254. • Timmons, F. (2011). Managers’ duty to maintain good workplace communication skills. Nursing Management, 18 (3), 33.