Philip R. Diab, MBA, PMP

I’ve always thought that some of the best lessons that we learn in life are taken out of sports.  In fact, several of our attitudes related to team play, cooperation, and winning/losing can be directly extrapolated from our own experiences in sports.  Perhaps this is one of the reasons that my parents encouraged me to participate in team sports as a child and why I am doing the same with my children.

One of the most important lessons that we get out of little league is not so much developing skills or team play, though both are critical.  It is the attitude that one must have after the game is over.  I remember a couple of years ago one of the boys in my kids little league team refusing the shake hands with the other team after the game.  Instead he stomped off angry, not because his team lost (in fact they won), but because he felt that the coach did not give him enough play time.   At the time I recall that the adults around did not model good behavior.  The coach chose to ignore him and his father shrugged and started laughing.  I turned and told my wife that had it been our child that he would have been banned from the next game along with being grounded for a while.

As I mentioned, sports can teach us great lessons about life and as I shared above they can also be great at showing us bad behavior.  So when I came across an interesting question in the Leadership In Project Management Group on LinkedIn about bad behavior I turned back to sports to see if it could help answer the question.

One of the members on the group asked “how do you define bad leadership?” The question elicited some interesting responses such as bad communication, taking credit when its not due, and so on.  While I believe all are valuable, what got me curious about the topic was a similar discussion that the group had about “great leadership” which lead the participants down the path of arguing whether great leadership is temporary or permanent.

As I reflected on both questions an important realization came to mind.  I believe that we sometimes make the mistake of mixing up the concept of “bad leadership” with “bad people”.  So whenever the topic of bad leadership comes up we see many examples such as Hitler or Bin Laden.  It is clear in these examples that the individuals who are discussed are bad people.  Some might argue that individuals could even be bad people but good leaders.  I can not really comment on this other than to say it is very dangerous to try and extract lessons on great leadership from bad people.

Let’s look at it from a different perspective though.  Can good people be bad leaders?  The answer to this question is an absolute yes.  Again I would argue that every one of us can look at his or her own life and work situations and can likely point to several individuals who are considered to be good people but are not able to lead effectively.

Taking the discussion a step further, can a good or even a great leader sometimes be a bad leader?  Here is where I think the question gets significantly more complicated but I would still argue that the answer is also a yes.  One of the best examples that can highlight my reasoning on this issue is Zidane.  For those of you who may not be familiar with the world of Football (also known as Soccer), Zinedine Yazid Zidane is a French retired footballer who led his national team in 1998 to win the World Cup. Zidane is widely considered as one of the greatest players in the history of the game.  However, I suspect that there are quite a few people who will remember him most for his behavior at the 2006 World Cup Finals game against Italy.  In the final minutes of the game he head-butted an Italian player in the chest, causing him to be thrown out of the game and his team to lose the match.  The most memorable scene in that game for me is when Zidane, having just received the red card, walks past the trophy head bowed, as if in regret, while the game went on.

Upon close examination of Zidane’s career we see several instances where his temper got the better of him.  However, it is impossible to argue that his talent and leadership on the squad were not instrumental in securing the 1998 World Cup, not to mention all the other accolades that he received at club level and other events.  The point that I am trying to make here is very simple.  A great leader can exhibit bad leadership skills and the irony of the matter is that these behaviors (great and poor) can happend within seconds of each other.  Perhaps the same characteristics that make a great leader are the exact same ones that could make a bad leader.  The key is to develop that self awareness and control to allow oneself to overcome ego and channel the stress in effective ways.

Shifting away from the world of sports and into the world of business and project management I believe that the same lessons apply.  The traits that make individuals great leaders can end up undoing their contribution to the team, organization, and society.  The same passion that a person exhibits while leading, if taken just a bit too far can be viewed as arrogance and self righteousness.  The same confidence that is needed to instill faith in a person, if taken out of context can be seen as ego and self centeredness.  The list can go on and on.

In the end we have to figure out a way to lead in spite of ourselves and short comings.  Combating one’s demons can be more difficult than anticipated and that in my opinion what distinguishes great leaders from mediocre ones.  It is the individuals who are able to exhibit ultimate control of themselves and their teams in the face of tremendous stress and crappy odds.