Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best... and Learn from the Worst
Written by Robert I. Sutton
Narrated by Bob Walter
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
If you are a boss who wants to do great work, what can you do about it? Good Boss, Bad Boss is devoted to answering that question. Stanford Professor Robert Sutton weaves together the best psychological and management research with compelling stories and cases to reveal the mindset and moves of the best (and worst) bosses. This book was inspired by the deluge of emails, research, phone calls, and conversations that Dr. Sutton experienced after publishing his blockbuster bestseller The No Asshole Rule. He realized that most of these stories and studies swirled around a central figure in every workplace: THE BOSS. These heart-breaking, inspiring, and sometimes funny stories taught Sutton that most bosses - and their followers - wanted a lot more than just a jerk-free workplace. They aspired to become (or work for) an all-around great boss, somebody with the skill and grit to inspire superior work, commitment, and dignity among their charges.
As Dr. Sutton digs into the nitty-gritty of what the best (and worst) bosses do, a theme runs throughout Good Boss, Bad Boss - which brings together the diverse lessons and is a hallmark of great bosses: They work doggedly to "stay in tune" with how their followers (and superiors, peers, and customers too) react to what they say and do. The best bosses are acutely aware that their success depends on having the self-awareness to control their moods and moves, to accurately interpret their impact on others, and to make adjustments on the fly that continuously spark effort, dignity, and pride among their people.
Robert I. Sutton
ROBERT SUTTON is a Stanford University professor and author of six management books, including the New York Times bestsellers The No Asshole Rule and Good Boss, Bad Boss. He is an IDEO Fellow and cofounder of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program and the Stanford Design Institute (known as the d.school). He lives in Menlo Park, California.
More audiobooks from Robert I. Sutton
The Friction Project: How Smart Leaders Make the Right Things Easier and the Wrong Things Harder Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Asshole Survival Guide: How to Deal with People Who Treat You Like Dirt Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Good Boss, Bad Boss
Related audiobooks
The Great Workplace: How to Build It, How to Keep It, and Why It Matters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Alive at Work: The Neuroscience of Helping Your People Love What They Do Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Decoding the Workplace: 50 Keys to Understanding People in Organizations Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Amp It Up: Leading for Hypergrowth by Raising Expectations, Increasing Urgency, and Elevating Intensity Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5No Excuses: How You Can Turn Any Workplace into a Great One Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStartup Boards: Getting the Most Out of Your Board of Directors Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nine Lies about Work: A Freethinking Leader's Guide to the Real World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How To Be A Great Boss Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The End of Leadership as We Know It: What It Takes to Lead in Today's Volatile and Complex World Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWin from Within: Build Organizational Culture for Competitive Advantage Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why We Work Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Energy + Motivation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Unwritten Rules of Managing Up: Project Management Techniques from the Trenches Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Leading with Noble Purpose: How to Create a Tribe of True Believers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPurpose, Meaning, and Passion Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Eat Sleep Work Repeat: 30 Hacks for Bringing Joy to Your Job Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Anywhere Leader: How to Lead and Succeed in Any Business Environment Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhatever Works: The Small Cues That Make a Surprising Difference in Our Success at Work - and How to Create a Happier Office Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsYou Can't Send a Duck to Eagle School: And Other Simple Truths of Leadership Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fully Staffed: The Definitive Guide to Finding & Keeping Great Employees Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Process!: How Discipline and Consistency Will Set You and Your Business Free Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mind Tools for Managers: 100 Ways to be a Better Boss Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Respectful Leader: Seven Ways to Influence Without Intimidation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary Bundle: Leadership & Religion: Includes Summary of The Coaching Habit & Summary of The Color of Law Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Management For You
Company Rules: Or Everything I Know About Business I Learned from the CIA Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 6 Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations, and Your Team Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Principle-Centered Leadership Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Introverted Leader: Building on Your Quiet Strength Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Radical Candor: Fully Revised & Updated Edition: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Good to Great Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The New One Minute Manager Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Thinking in Systems: A Primer Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/525 Ways to Win with People: How to Make Others Feel Like a Million Bucks Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Spark: How to Lead Yourself and Others to Greater Success Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 4 Disciplines of Execution: Revised and Updated: Achieving Your Wildly Important Goals Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Multipliers, Revised and Updated: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Unfair Advantage: How You Already Have What It Takes to Succeed Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Developing the Leader Within You 2.0 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Power Code: More Joy. Less Ego. Maximum Impact for Women (and Everyone). Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Anxious Achiever: Turn Your Biggest Fears into Your Leadership Superpower Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Authentic Leader: Five Essential Traits of Effective, Inspiring Leaders Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundaries for Leaders: Results, Relationships, and Being Ridiculously In Charge Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The First Minute: How to start conversations that get results Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Talk to Anyone at Work: 72 Little Tricks for Big Success Communicating on the Job Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Good Boss, Bad Boss
74 ratings5 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Straight forward advice about the do's and don't of great leadership. Topics such as communication, compassion, mixed with real-life success stories concerning CEO's who have lived the good and bad examples of management. Recommended for anyone new to supervision or staff who might have to deal with a bad boss.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Very nice book and a real eye opener the only problem is the use of bad language once in a while
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This book builds on the author's previous work, "The No Asshole Rule". It explains the importance of the boss in creating a positive work environment and provides practical tips on how to be a good boss and keep your "inner bosshold" in check.Easy to read, and practical.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5This book is mostly about how not to be an jerk as a supervisor.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I do research on leadership. I primarily focus on good leaders, the one who are inspiring, empowering, and supportive. But I have also done a few studies on bad bosses. The stories that I've heard about bad bosses are shocking to me - the lack of respect, the controlling manner, and the incivility. In this follow-up to [The No Asshole Rule], Robert Sutton has the statistics to back up the stories. Based on a Zogby survey, 37% of people have been bullied at work, and about three-quarters of those bullies are bosses. This is problematic because a bad boss impacts motivation, retention, morale, and employee well-being. In this book, Sutton proposes that we can learn from both good bosses and bad bosses. His advice is consistent with the research on effective leadership and is illustrated with lots of examples. Here's some advice for bosses:“Bosses ought to be judged by what they and their people get done and by how their followers feel along the way. . . . The best bosses balance performance and humanity, getting things done in ways that enhance rather than destroy dignity and pride.” Fight as if you are right, listen as if you are wrong. “The best bosses dance on the edge of overconfidence, but a healthy dose of self-doubt and humility saves them from turning arrogant and pigheaded." And an especially relevant piece of advice for employees:Protect yourself from the energy suckers. “I’ve urged people who work for nasty bosses to practice the art of emotional detachment, so those creeps wouldn’t touch their souls.”My only complaint is that the goal of the book was broad. As a result, I came away with a list of tips, but no clear overarching message. Still, if you like to pick up a leadership book from time to time, this one is both lively and evidence-based.