December 6, 2025 • 9 mins
Most of us have had bosses who didn't quite live up to expectations. Today, the Fear & Greed make a list of the eight biggest mistakes managers make.
Fear & Greed Q+A: Join Sean Aylmer, Michael Thompson and Adam Lang as they answer questions on business, investing, economics, politics and more. If you have your own question, get in touch via our website, LinkedIn, Instagram or Facebook.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to Fear and Greed Q and A, where we
ask and answer questions about business, investing, economics, politics, and more.
I'm Michael Thompson, and good morning, Sean Aylmer.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Good morning, Michael, and good morning to you.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
Adam Lange, Hello, Michael, Hello Sean.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Today we're going to make a list, because I love
a good list. I want to make a list of
the biggest mistakes managers make.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Now Adam's laughing here because at one point in our careers,
Adam was Michael's manager. So I'm looking forward to hearing
Michael's list. Can I kick off?
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yeah, because I've got too many to go through, So
you get a started there, Sere.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Okay. My biggest gripe with managers I've had over the
years is when they don't communicate to you. So you
send them an email, you get no response. You ask
them a question, you get no response. I think the two.
Even if the manager doesn't have the answer, just the
fact that you've been heard really matters. So my number
(01:12):
one is a lack of communication, lack of feedback from
emails talking that sort of thing.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Yeah, okay, mine, I like it. Well, I don't like
but this idea of avoiding tough conversations right where all
of a sudden, the tough conversations are perhaps passed to
somebody else rather than just having them directly. And the
more often you are having those conversations as a leader,
the more frequent the conversations that are taking place, the
(01:42):
easier it is to have those tough conversations because the
dialogue is already there. And when you have a manager
that avoids those conversations, it heightens the tension around when
you actually have one of them, and it's just not
good for accountability within the workplace. And that is something
that I learned in a positive way for Adam, not
because it was that he demonstrationalizations. Okay, Adam, give us
(02:07):
one to add to the list.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Probably I'm pleased say this isn't self reflection. Leaving badly,
So leaving a job badly is I think a Really,
it's just a tough thing to do because obviously someone
feels pretty bad about the situation and can't help but
get emotional, but just try and leave. Well, yeah, because
(02:32):
you're typically outside of a job a lot longer than
you were in it, and yeah, that can either feel
like a great thing look back with a great memory
versus having a regret.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Could I ask where delegation fits into the list of
biggest mistakes managers make? Would you put a lack of
delegation up there, or would you say too much delegating?
Can also is there like a sweet spot somewhere in
the middle there where you're kind of delegating things that
you would never dare to do yourself kind of thing,
(03:05):
or you wouldn't feel comfortable doing yourself, so you delegate
it to someone else, or you don't delegate and then
you end up taking on too much as a leader.
Where does delegation fit within the list of mistakes that
managers make?
Speaker 3 (03:20):
Yeah, it's an imperfect science. I've done both, I think
at varying times. But it ends up being totally dependent
on the people. You know, So what's the right level
of pressure that someone can take? And so you have
to be I think that to one of Sean's points
before the good communication thing, that's the essential part is
(03:41):
knowing someone. Are you being a little too directive micromanaging
or are you being two hands off? You know, somewhere
in the middle of the sweet spot and where any
task is on that sort of exchange is going to
be very dependent on the individual and the task.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
So do you know. One that I get very have
gotten very frustrated with over the years is when you've
made an effort and your manager hasn't made the effort.
So you'll be instructed to do something and you make
the effort to do it, and maybe I'd hadn't done
a very good job, so that but a bit irrelevant
the fact that you had made the effort and then
(04:19):
the manager kind of two days later says, where's the
you know this or you know what are we doing
about that? And so well, I've sent that to you. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
but let's just let's just do it together. And it's
kind of that incredibly frustrating thing where you've actually done
the work and they don't even have the decency to
read it to say, hey, this is a good idea
(04:40):
or this isn't a good idea. And I had one
manager in particular quite a few years ago, and I
think the way they asked me those questions, it was
for them for them to get me to think about it.
So you do all this work and then you'd walk
in and you realize they hadn't looked at it. And
they're not interested in it, And oh it drove me, mad.
Speaker 3 (05:01):
Adam.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
You mentioned one in passing before about micromanaging, and I
reckon everyone has had experience with a micromanager, someone who
just does not let you get in and do the
job yourself. Whether it's is it a lack of trust
essentially to do it, or just a belief that you
can do it better yourself, or I don't know what
(05:22):
it is that causes micromanaging, But my god, that is
a hard thing to deal with, isn't it.
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Oh it's tough for everybody, but you know you wanted
to like, yes, it's tough, but is it really a
form of ignorance, meaning that you so believe that you're
good at it that others can't be as good at it?
And you know that just can't be true, right, either
your training's wrong or the execution's wrong.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
So I think you should be able to tell your
manager though, And I know there's an empower and balance,
but I have at time said to managers, Hey, you've
asked me to do this, I'll do it and then
we'll talk about it afterwards. Maybe I have enough self
confidence to do that. So not everyone has that yeah,
but I do think there is something that if you've
been given a task and then your manager starts to
do it. I mean I've been in this position saying, well,
(06:10):
if you want to do it, you do it. That's fine.
But if you're getting me to do it, I'll do
it and then we'll talk about it, and it really
puts them on the back foot.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
Can I ask you both about being too slow to
move somebody on if you are a if you're a
manager and not acting quickly enough, if you've got an underperformer,
or if you've got someone who is not good for
the company culture or not good for other people within
(06:43):
the workplace, and letting that fester and go on for
too long. Have you seen that happen, have you done it,
or have you kind of learned that lesson.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
I'm an expert at letting that happen. And it's not
even getting letting people go right. It's more subtle than that.
It's about a poor cultural fit or a behavior that's
not great that you need to address. That is hard
as a manager to actually take someone on on and say,
look the way you're approaching this, you're too bolshey, or
(07:16):
you're not using the right languageoy like because it's a
personal insult. Oh my god, I am an expert letting
that one flow.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
I think they definitely got better at it over time,
but certainly made that mistake. When you in the coaching business,
performance by design, we only ever get invited.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
In nice plug.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
Someone someone thinks that something's wrong, they need some help
with it, So we never get invited in. Really, but
everything's going so well that the management team is signlighted
to go, Hey, you know we're going so well. We
need to make sure this keeps going. Let's get some
experts in. It's always a problem, and always, always, always,
when there's a problem, it's always related. We know that
(08:01):
there's stuff wrong here. We don't actually need you to
tell us. We almost just need to have a conversation
about how to get it done.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
One last question. We are out of time. But when
you are a leader, when you are a manager, the
buck should stop with you. Have you ever worked with
a manager who just refuses to take any accountability for
what happens within the team, And always it's the fault
of perhaps someone else, or perhaps someone within the team
(08:29):
who didn't quite do it properly. Instead, Adam, you are
nodding vigorously. You have seen this time? Oh yeah, all
the time.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
It's a cultural fail because at what point was that acceptable?
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Yeah. I've had stand up arguments with my manager about
them taking responsibility for me not being able to take
responsibility for stuff, saying I can't take responsibility for this,
you need to take responsibility for it. And I've had
a lot of fights with my managers over the years.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
So I'm getting that sense.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
All right.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
I managed, I managed a journalists right, and that was
never an easy task. I've got to say, Oh my god.
Speaker 4 (09:12):
Yeah, okay, So our list no communicating, avoiding tough conversations,
leaving a job badly, poor delegation, a lack of effort, micromanaging,
a poor cultural fit, and a lack of accountability.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
Wow, that's it.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
It's like a Christmas list. Yeah, it's a wish list.
It's like we're building.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
Like my Men style.
Speaker 1 (09:32):
There we go write a handsbook on what not to
do just based on that list alone. Thank you very much, Sean,
thanks Michael, thanks, thank you, Adam, thank you both. If
you've got a question that you'd like us to tackle,
anything that you'd like us to explore, then send it
through on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, or at fearangreed dot com
dot au. I'm Michael Thompson and this is fear and
greed and a
Welcome to Fear and Greed Q and A, where we
ask and answer questions about business, investing, economics, politics, and more.
I'm Michael Thompson, and good morning, Sean Aylmer.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Good morning, Michael, and good morning to you.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
Adam Lange, Hello, Michael, Hello Sean.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Today we're going to make a list, because I love
a good list. I want to make a list of
the biggest mistakes managers make.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Now Adam's laughing here because at one point in our careers,
Adam was Michael's manager. So I'm looking forward to hearing
Michael's list. Can I kick off?
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yeah, because I've got too many to go through, So
you get a started there, Sere.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Okay. My biggest gripe with managers I've had over the
years is when they don't communicate to you. So you
send them an email, you get no response. You ask
them a question, you get no response. I think the two.
Even if the manager doesn't have the answer, just the
fact that you've been heard really matters. So my number
(01:12):
one is a lack of communication, lack of feedback from
emails talking that sort of thing.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Yeah, okay, mine, I like it. Well, I don't like
but this idea of avoiding tough conversations right where all
of a sudden, the tough conversations are perhaps passed to
somebody else rather than just having them directly. And the
more often you are having those conversations as a leader,
the more frequent the conversations that are taking place, the
(01:42):
easier it is to have those tough conversations because the
dialogue is already there. And when you have a manager
that avoids those conversations, it heightens the tension around when
you actually have one of them, and it's just not
good for accountability within the workplace. And that is something
that I learned in a positive way for Adam, not
because it was that he demonstrationalizations. Okay, Adam, give us
(02:07):
one to add to the list.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Probably I'm pleased say this isn't self reflection. Leaving badly,
So leaving a job badly is I think a Really,
it's just a tough thing to do because obviously someone
feels pretty bad about the situation and can't help but
get emotional, but just try and leave. Well, yeah, because
(02:32):
you're typically outside of a job a lot longer than
you were in it, and yeah, that can either feel
like a great thing look back with a great memory
versus having a regret.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Could I ask where delegation fits into the list of
biggest mistakes managers make? Would you put a lack of
delegation up there, or would you say too much delegating?
Can also is there like a sweet spot somewhere in
the middle there where you're kind of delegating things that
you would never dare to do yourself kind of thing,
(03:05):
or you wouldn't feel comfortable doing yourself, so you delegate
it to someone else, or you don't delegate and then
you end up taking on too much as a leader.
Where does delegation fit within the list of mistakes that
managers make?
Speaker 3 (03:20):
Yeah, it's an imperfect science. I've done both, I think
at varying times. But it ends up being totally dependent
on the people. You know, So what's the right level
of pressure that someone can take? And so you have
to be I think that to one of Sean's points
before the good communication thing, that's the essential part is
(03:41):
knowing someone. Are you being a little too directive micromanaging
or are you being two hands off? You know, somewhere
in the middle of the sweet spot and where any
task is on that sort of exchange is going to
be very dependent on the individual and the task.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
So do you know. One that I get very have
gotten very frustrated with over the years is when you've
made an effort and your manager hasn't made the effort.
So you'll be instructed to do something and you make
the effort to do it, and maybe I'd hadn't done
a very good job, so that but a bit irrelevant
the fact that you had made the effort and then
(04:19):
the manager kind of two days later says, where's the
you know this or you know what are we doing
about that? And so well, I've sent that to you. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
but let's just let's just do it together. And it's
kind of that incredibly frustrating thing where you've actually done
the work and they don't even have the decency to
read it to say, hey, this is a good idea
(04:40):
or this isn't a good idea. And I had one
manager in particular quite a few years ago, and I
think the way they asked me those questions, it was
for them for them to get me to think about it.
So you do all this work and then you'd walk
in and you realize they hadn't looked at it. And
they're not interested in it, And oh it drove me, mad.
Speaker 3 (05:01):
Adam.
Speaker 1 (05:01):
You mentioned one in passing before about micromanaging, and I
reckon everyone has had experience with a micromanager, someone who
just does not let you get in and do the
job yourself. Whether it's is it a lack of trust
essentially to do it, or just a belief that you
can do it better yourself, or I don't know what
(05:22):
it is that causes micromanaging, But my god, that is
a hard thing to deal with, isn't it.
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Oh it's tough for everybody, but you know you wanted
to like, yes, it's tough, but is it really a
form of ignorance, meaning that you so believe that you're
good at it that others can't be as good at it?
And you know that just can't be true, right, either
your training's wrong or the execution's wrong.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
So I think you should be able to tell your
manager though, And I know there's an empower and balance,
but I have at time said to managers, Hey, you've
asked me to do this, I'll do it and then
we'll talk about it afterwards. Maybe I have enough self
confidence to do that. So not everyone has that yeah,
but I do think there is something that if you've
been given a task and then your manager starts to
do it. I mean I've been in this position saying, well,
(06:10):
if you want to do it, you do it. That's fine.
But if you're getting me to do it, I'll do
it and then we'll talk about it, and it really
puts them on the back foot.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
Can I ask you both about being too slow to
move somebody on if you are a if you're a
manager and not acting quickly enough, if you've got an underperformer,
or if you've got someone who is not good for
the company culture or not good for other people within
(06:43):
the workplace, and letting that fester and go on for
too long. Have you seen that happen, have you done it,
or have you kind of learned that lesson.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
I'm an expert at letting that happen. And it's not
even getting letting people go right. It's more subtle than that.
It's about a poor cultural fit or a behavior that's
not great that you need to address. That is hard
as a manager to actually take someone on on and say,
look the way you're approaching this, you're too bolshey, or
(07:16):
you're not using the right languageoy like because it's a
personal insult. Oh my god, I am an expert letting
that one flow.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
I think they definitely got better at it over time,
but certainly made that mistake. When you in the coaching business,
performance by design, we only ever get invited.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
In nice plug.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
Someone someone thinks that something's wrong, they need some help
with it, So we never get invited in. Really, but
everything's going so well that the management team is signlighted
to go, Hey, you know we're going so well. We
need to make sure this keeps going. Let's get some
experts in. It's always a problem, and always, always, always,
when there's a problem, it's always related. We know that
(08:01):
there's stuff wrong here. We don't actually need you to
tell us. We almost just need to have a conversation
about how to get it done.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
One last question. We are out of time. But when
you are a leader, when you are a manager, the
buck should stop with you. Have you ever worked with
a manager who just refuses to take any accountability for
what happens within the team, And always it's the fault
of perhaps someone else, or perhaps someone within the team
(08:29):
who didn't quite do it properly. Instead, Adam, you are
nodding vigorously. You have seen this time? Oh yeah, all
the time.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
It's a cultural fail because at what point was that acceptable?
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Yeah. I've had stand up arguments with my manager about
them taking responsibility for me not being able to take
responsibility for stuff, saying I can't take responsibility for this,
you need to take responsibility for it. And I've had
a lot of fights with my managers over the years.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
So I'm getting that sense.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
All right.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
I managed, I managed a journalists right, and that was
never an easy task. I've got to say, Oh my god.
Speaker 4 (09:12):
Yeah, okay, So our list no communicating, avoiding tough conversations,
leaving a job badly, poor delegation, a lack of effort, micromanaging,
a poor cultural fit, and a lack of accountability.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
Wow, that's it.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
It's like a Christmas list. Yeah, it's a wish list.
It's like we're building.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
Like my Men style.
Speaker 1 (09:32):
There we go write a handsbook on what not to
do just based on that list alone. Thank you very much, Sean,
thanks Michael, thanks, thank you, Adam, thank you both. If
you've got a question that you'd like us to tackle,
anything that you'd like us to explore, then send it
through on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, or at fearangreed dot com
dot au. I'm Michael Thompson and this is fear and
greed and a
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