We’ve all had them — the micromanagers, the credit stealers, the screamers, the ones who treat “reply all at midnight” like a leadership strategy. Bad bosses are everywhere, but here’s the kicker: leadership is learned. Which means we can unlearn the toxic part and redefine how we lead.

In this episode, we sit down with Mita Mallick — Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of The Devil Emails at Midnight: What Good Leaders Can Learn From Bad Bosses, LinkedIn Top Voice, corporate changemaker, and fierce advocate for fixing broken workplaces. Together, we unpack why bad bosses are made (not born), how to spot when you’re slipping into toxic habits yourself, and what it takes to build the kind of leadership people actually want to follow.

We get into:

The real reasons people become bad bosses (hint: stress, modeling, and unhealed personal stuff)

Why micromanagement, fear, and time-hoarding are leadership red flags

How inclusion, credit-sharing, and genuine presence boost retention more than hoodies and free apps ever will

Practical ways to “manage up” when your boss is… less than inspiring

How to stop being that boss and start modeling the kind of leader you’d want to work for

Because nobody wants to be the horror story told at happy hour 10 years from now. Let’s do better.

Connect with Mita:

Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1394316488

LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mita-mallick-2b165822  

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