Toxic bosses don’t only wear people down, they spark the very burnout cycles that drain whole teams. Cait Donovan talks with author and change-maker Mita Mallick about the damage bad leadership leaves behind and the toll it takes on both people and organizations. Mita shares personal stories, including her experience with a boss she nicknamed “Medusa,” whose intimidation and cruelty pushed her into anxiety and disengagement. That season of her career led to what she calls a “get out plan,” a way to take the energy of frustration and turn it into action through networking, reflection, and mapping a path forward. How do you know when it’s time to make your own plan, and what would change if you gave yourself permission to act before you hit the breaking point?

The conversation also turns to the harder truth that under pressure any of us can slip into toxic behaviors. Mita and Cait explore why leadership requires self-awareness, accountability, and vulnerability rather than surface-level fixes or quick answers. Drawing from her new book “The Devil Emails at Midnight,” Mita challenges us to rethink how we respond to unhealthy work cultures and to consider the responsibility we each carry in shaping them. What kind of workplace are you helping to build, and how might things shift if you took ownership of the way you show up every day?

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 Introduction to Fried, the Burnout Podcast

00:57 Meet Mita Mallick: Author of The Devil Emails at Midnight

02:26 Burnout Story: Surviving “Medusa” the Toxic Boss

09:09 Creating a “Get Out” Plan to Escape Burnout

17:13 Urgency Culture and Toxic Leadership Patterns

27:01 Workplace Bias, Pregnancy Penalties, and Burnout

31:37 Talent Hoarding and Betrayal at Work

38:19 Building Self-Awareness and Better Leadership

Connect with Mita Mallick:

Mita’s Website

Follow Mita on Instagram

Connect with Mita on LinkedIn

Connect with Cait:

Cait Donovan is a keynote speaker, author, and host of FRIED: The Burnout Podcast, specializing in burnout, mis/match, and sustainable performance at work. She partners with corporate leaders, teams, and professional associations through keynotes, workshops, and leadership sessions that treat burnout as data, not failure, to help organizations reduce burnout without blame or shame and build healthier, high performing cultures.

To bring Cait to your organization or event, book an inquiry call here: https://bit.ly/bookcait

Learn more about Cait’s speaking work: https://www.caitdonovan.com/speaking

Short on time? Watch this 3-min video: https://bit.ly/caitdreel2025

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm