Toxic Leaders Research Paper

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The Army defines toxic leaders as commanders who put their own needs first, micro-manage subordinates, behave in a mean-spirited manner or display poor decision-making. Toxic leaders hinder the overall structure and progression of any organization they are affiliated with. It is crucial to understand what characteristics a toxic leader has in order to ensure they are adjusted professionally, counseled and prevent others from displaying these qualities. These attributes include oppositional behavior, power politics, condescending attitudes, a lack of confidence, poor self-control, inflexibility and a failure to foster unity. Oppositional behavior is generally any means by which an individual provides force against the forward movement of a…show more content…
People will not obey the orders of anyone who is not self-confident. If they do, it will lead to poor production and an overthrowing of the individual within the core of the organization. Leaders must understand that self-confidence will only provide strength and is perhaps the most vital aspect of an operational leader. Poor self-control and inflexibility are tremendously overseen traits. If a leader lacks self-control they place themselves into situations which will always yield negative results. These results may lead to things that may harm the remainder of the institution and cause mission failure. However, a leader must also be flexible to be able to deal with such situations that may be present in the setting they’re working in. Flexibility will often host self-control and overall discipline. The final toxic leader trait is a failure to promote unity. Individuals who cause division instead of harmony create an animalistic atmosphere in which everyone fends for themselves and fail to foster advancement. When a unit works collectively each individual is like a gear in a well-oiled machine. When it does the opposite, no gears are active and the oil is nonexistent. The phrase is cliché but rings ever true, there is no I in team, everyone works together to provide strength, consistency and

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