Energy Zapper or Sapper

Are you plugged in?  Is your energy operating on high?  Or are you missing part of the connection?

How your leader responds to this is important.  You want to have high energy and perform and optimum levels because you love your job and what it does for people.  Sadly your leader is an energy sapper - sucks away the energy as opposed to an energy zapper - giving you energy to move forward, be creative and innovative with your solutions and project development.

What to do?  Let them know.  Try to identify for them what they are doing to sap the energy from you.  Let them know what inspires you and gives you energy to perform at your peak.  Leaders are human and can need a hand understanding what works best for you - let them know.  They will thank you in the end!

The Leader in Survival Mode

Here is the leader.  Stuck in the jungle, where it is survival of the fittest.
You are hoping that your leader is the fittest...but unfortunately, on this blog, they are not.
They are in survival mode.
That means that you are the feast.....the one that gets 'sold down the river' or 'fed to the lions' or simply 'hung out to dry'.  This leader, mouth wide open, is always looking for a scapegoat so that they can go about their business unscathed.
What to do?  Make sure that you take notes of conversations, including dates and outcomes  - you need to protect yourself - sort of like camouflage.  Also, where possible, copy the leader's boss on things that are of interest, especially where you know the cc:  started at the beginning of the email chain.  Lastly, always be respectful of the leader - no matter what, they still have your fate in their hands.

How to Survive Poor Leadership

If you haven't already downloaded it from the blog page, here is the link to get your FREE copy of

5 Keys to Surviving Poor Leadership.

Click here to get it today!

Then come back here and give us some feedback - your thoughts, ideas and experiences can help others survive too!

How Not to Inspire Others

1. Take their ideas for your own, do not give credit
2. Check up on schedule and agenda daily or more frequently
3. Miss including someone in a key conversation and then ask for their feedback
4. Make sure that permission is asked for every step along the way through a project
5. Fail to plan for succession
6. Tell people they are on the high-potential list and fail to provide them with anything to develop their potential any further
7. Never recognize performance
8. Contradict everything
9. Be ambiguous describing required results or potential consequences
10. Squelch creativity and risk-taking

If you do any of these, or think you do, it's time to connect with a Professional Success Coach to develop your leadership skills.  Connect with Coach Lora Crestan for more details and a complimentary coaching session. Click here.

The Babysitter

So here is the leader who has been re-allocated to another role...and has to come back because of another exit from a key employee. Now, in his words, he is just ‘baby-sitting’ until a new replacement can be found. Questions abound:


• What happened to the other guy?

• Why, if this guy was removed, is he coming back, with a worsening attitude?

• Why are we not good enough to continue with the company mission and need a ‘babysitter’?

What to do? This is an opportunity to remind the babysitter of the good work the team did together. Thank them for the support and let them know that you are capable of executing your role as in the past, and you will let them know if they are needed for anything. Keep the conversation light, not confrontational, ignoring the cheap shot of ‘babysitter’. It’s the high road – it always works, even if it doesn’t feel like it sometimes.

What You Can Learn from an Exit Interview

This company has undergone a few leadership changes in the past 2 years. New president, new VP – twice, new senior director – three times. The latest departure - a senior director – was in role for 3 days, went to a high level competitor.

In the exit interview, it was clearly understood that the remuneration for the role had quite a bit of flexibility. When the exiting leader stated what the other company offered for salary (addition of 25% of current salary), there was no hesitation in the ‘we’ll match that’ statement out of the president’s mouth. The president also stated that although the company had not provided a specific bonus clause for a decade, they would for this year guarantee this specific bonus payout.


Imagine the things you learn in an exit interview – you were certainly underpaid in the role you were in, let alone the one you were going into. What else could have been so underfunded or done with such lack of integrity if this quick conclusion could be reached with a single breath? Makes you glad you are leaving, and sad for those left behind.