In an article for the Guardian, André Spicer, professor at Bayes Business School at the University of London and author of the book Business Bullshit, analyzes how people's approach to and response to terrible bosses has changed. Here is what he writes:
"If you walked by Twitter's headquarters in San Francisco on Thursday, you would have seen a lot of insults plastered on the side of the building: 'Elon Musk: mediocre scumbag, petty racist, megalomaniac…'" Inside, employees received a message where they were required to pledge to work 'long, high-intensity hours' or quit their jobs. This followed mass layoffs and an email sent at 2:30 a.m. that stated "there is a high possibility that Twitter will not survive the next economic downturn."
Musk's lackadaisical approach to managing people has been long documented. Recall the accusations made about his behavior at Tesla, where he reportedly yelled at an engineer: “You're a filthy idiot! … Get out of here and don't come back!” according to Wired. Other colleagues told the magazine that he publicly humiliated and insulted people and that staff were afraid to go near his desk because he had "unpredictable tantrums". "He was yelling that I didn't know what I was doing, that I was an idiot, that he's never worked with someone so incompetent," one former employee said of her firing.
Surveys have shown that many abusive bosses actually feel that their tactics serve them well. Musk certainly believes that his employees must work long hours if they want to achieve great things. Research has consistently found that this doesn't work: people who work for bad or abusive bosses tend to be less productive and have worse mental and physical health.
What seems to be changing is our willingness to put up with terrible bosses – whether they're just bad at their jobs or abusive. Following Musk's ultimatum this week, hundreds of Twitter employees will reportedly walk off the job. Across the US labor market as a whole, consulting firm McKinsey has estimated that up to 40% of workers are planning to quit. Labor market economics offers a partial explanation: often, we stay with abusive bosses when there are few other options available, and after the pandemic, the job market has gone through a healthy period.
Of course, there are plenty of people who don't leave, despite a bad boss — and the reasons why they might stay don't offer much hope for Musk and Twitter's future.
1 - Disa njerëz që punojnë me një shef abuziv bien pre e asaj që psikologët e quajnë "pafuqia e mësuar". Kur njerëzit përballen me rrethana të vështira, me kalimin e kohës fillojnë ta trajtojnë abuzimin si normal. Ata ndihen gjithnjë e më të paaftë për të ndryshuar dhe bëhen gjithnjë e më pasivë. Kjo do të thotë se ata humbasin mundësitë për të ndryshuar, edhe kur është e mundur.
2 - Një arsye tjetër që njerëzit nuk i lënë shefat e këqij është se ata fillojnë të identifikohen me ta. Ky është një lloj sindromi i Stokholmit në vendin e punës ku njerëzit “modelojnë” veten mbi ta.
3 - Arsyeja e fundit pse disa njerëz që punojnë për shefat abuzues qëndrojnë është sepse ata vetë shfaqin shenja psikopatie.
Musk may feel that despite the mass departures, many of his best employees are likely to stay. Judging by the research on this topic, it is likely that many of the people who are not fired will leave. Those who stay are likely to be less productive, less healthy, more passive, more Musk worshipers, and more likely to be a little psychopathic themselves. The days of the bad boss may be numbered.”
