Praise for The Allure of Toxic Leaders “Remarkably comprehensive yet penetrating analysis that sees bad leadership both as morally wrong and psychologically dysfunctional, with practical strategies for reform. A sophisticated study that sees the problem as a failure of followership as well as leadership.”—James MacGregor Burns “Beautifully reasoned and intricately argued, [Lipman-Blumen] convincingly explains how followers help spawn toxic leaders. Fortunately, she also tells us how to get out of the trap we’re in and proposes a highly innovative model of leadership that promises a healthier future.”—Jerry I. Porras, Emeritus, Stanford Business School “Easily one of the best leadership books of the 1990s was Ron Heifetz’s Leadership Without Easy Answers. By explaining why followership is equally demanding, The Allure of Toxic Leaders is a perfect complement.”—Financial Times “An absolutely brilliant book. . . . One of the very few books I’ve read that made me see things from a wholly new perspective. One of the best books I’ve ever read on leadership, and I’ve read a lot of them.”—Robert J. Sternberg, Tufts University, author of Successful Intelligence: How Practical and Creative Intelligence Determine Success in Life “A solid look at a dismaying business trend. … Examines the seemingly inexplicable reasons why many employees are loyal to CEOs and politicians who abuse power, cook 2 finances and otherwise virtually destroy their companies. … Offers numerous examples in both politics and business of toxic leaders who have survived crises and received accolades despite their obvious flaws. … The book’s strength is the detailed psychological approach to examining the phenomenon of loyalty to toxic leaders.”—Publishers Weekly “A powerful and eye-opening analysis of the subtle and corrosive dynamics of leader-follower relationships. Lipman-Blumen’s penetrating insights expose the seduction of power and how followers collude in this evil dance. She proffers wise counsel and early warnings on how to detect and defend against negative leadership. I enthusiastically recommend it to all leaders—and even more, to their vulnerable followers.”—Warren Bennis, author of On Becoming a Leader “It’s a long, detailed, thoughtful essay, concentrating on followers and the predicaments they find themselves in with toxic leaders, and the various strategies they employ to extricate themselves. It’s rewarding, but not easy, reading.”—Globe & Mail “The Allure of Toxic Leaders provides remarkable insights into why so many destructive leaders gain and keep power. By explaining the role of followers, Lipman-Blumen makes a profound statement about the nature of leadership itself.”—Max De Pree, former CEO of Herman Miller, Inc., author of Leadership is an Art “In our search for leaders, our appraisal of leaders, Jean Lipman-Blumen provides us with a powerful tool to identify, understand and analyze the toxic leader as she gives us fresh 3 observations on our own journey to leadership.”—Frances Hesselbein, Chairman, Leader to Leader Institute 4 The ALLURE of TOXIC LEADERS Why We Follow Destructive Bosses and Corrupt Politicians—and How We Can Survive Them Jean Lipman-Blumen 5 Oxford University Press Oxford University Press, Inc., publishes works that farther Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Copyright © 2005 by Jean Lipman-Blumen First published by Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 www.oup.com First issued as an Oxford University Press paperback, 2006 ISBN-13: 978-0-19-531200-3 ISBN-10: 0-19-531200-7 Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by 6 any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows: Lipman-Blumen, Jean. The allure of toxic leaders : why we follow destructive bosses and corrupt politicians— and how we can survive them / Jean Lipman-Blumen. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-19-516634-5 1. Leadership—Moral and ethical aspects. 2. Leadership—Psychological aspects. 3. Power (Social sciences) 4. Immorality. I. Title. HM1261.L56 2004 303.3'4—dc22 2004012520 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper 7 To Hal entwined in life, in heart, and in work. 8 Contents Preface Part I: The Big Picture Chapter 1 Toxic Leaders: They’re Plentiful Part II: Leaders, Leaders, Why Do We All Want Leaders? Chapter 2 Within Ourselves: Psychological Needs That Make Us Seek Leaders Chapter 3 Deeper Within Ourselves: Angst and Illusions about Life, Death, and Immortality Chapter 4 A World of Uncertainties and Change; A World of Certainties and Stability Chapter 5 Leadership in Crisis: The Dangers of Creating God Chapter 6 An Unfinished and Unfinishable World: Self-Esteem, the Achievement Ethic, and the Call to Heroism Part III: How We Create Willing Followers and Toxic Leaders Chapter 7 Rationalizations and Control Myths: Keeping Toxic Leaders in Power Chapter 8 Pushing Nontoxic Leaders Over the Line 9 Chapter 9 The Odd Couple: The Media and Boards of Directors Part IV: Liberating Ourselves from the Allure of Toxic Leaders Chapter 10 Is There Any Silver Lining? Can Any Good Come from Tolerating a Toxic Leader? Chapter 11 What Are Our Choices? How Can We Deal with Toxic Leaders? Chapter 12 Detecting the Early Signs of Toxicity in Leaders and Their Noble Visions Chapter 13 Freeing Ourselves from Toxic Leaders: Nurturing Reluctant Leaders and Finding the Leader Within Notes Bibliography Index 10