Robert I. Sutton

I 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 show more 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. show less

I recently heard Bob Sutton speaking on Radio National and was inspired to buy his "little book". Should be compulsory reading for anyone who goes out to work! Talks about the cost (in $ as well as emotional terms) of abusive behaviour in the workplace, gives you the tools to check you aren't being the abuser and techniques on how to cope if you are in an abusive workplace. I'm particularly interested in the concept of constructive confrontation as a tool to generate ideas in a workplace - show more Aussies will relate to this as playing the ball, not the man. Also love the concept of knowing when not to fight (i.e. if you've lost your battle don't undermine the implementation of the idea you opposed, do your best to implement it - either it will fail and your criticism will be right or it will succeed and you'll've learned something. Win Win!) Some of the anecdotes are horrific, and though hopefully we don't all experience such workplace brutality, this book will help us all build or maintain more civilized workplaces! show less

There are many factors that contribute to a negative workplace but none is more obvious than abusive and selfish bosses, colleagues and clients. There are several themes that appealed to me in this book: negativity is poisonous and will infect even the most pleasant people; bosses aren't the only ones responsible for abusive behaviour (working in a client-focused area, I can confirm that clients are often the worst offenders); we are all guilty at some time or other of improper conduct (I show more know I am), the trick is to recognize it and work on it.
Sutton develops these themes in a simple accessible style with many examples, some of them famous others more anecdotal, and he gives a few simple suggestions on how to avoid or diffuse unpleasant people and circumstances.
I recommend this book most, however, for its self-test: knowing yourself is the best way to prevent harassment and abusive behaviour in the workplace (or at home for that matter) and developing techniques to control anger, sarcasm and aggression. Then, you can build your courage to call others on their asshole behaviour... show less

Based on his article in the Harvard Business Review, which in turn was based on years of research and experience, The No Asshole Rule condenses organizational behavior and productivity research into a brief, humorous, and easy-to-read and implement book. I have left two very toxic work environments over the last few years due to some of the factors listed in this book (though it hadn't occurred to me to call my old bosses assholes). As I was reading this book, I wanted to highlight and show more annotate with examples, then send my copy to previous bosses and say "This! You do this! ALL THE TIME! And it's ruined your department. Cut it out."
Importantly, this book is not just about pointing out the asshole behaviors in others. Sutton is very clear--we are all, at least occasionally, assholes. He gives suggestions and guidance on recognizing and correcting this behavior. My current workplace uses almost every one of his suggestions, though they don't say they have a "No asshole rule."
If you work with other humans, especially if you are in charge of them, I strongly recommend this book. show less