Leadership Influence: “Bad leaders inspire you to be a good leader. Good leaders inspire you to be a great leader.”
Over the course of my life, I’ve had some terrible leaders, and some amazing ones. And I’ve learned a lot from both.
It’s easy as leaders to fall into the trap of leading the way we were led, whether that’s good or bad. But if we want to be intentional about how we show up for others, we need to pause and reflect on the examples that shaped us.
I once had a boss who made jokes at my expense, yelled at employees, and rarely gave credit to others. While I had some success in that role, I saw how his leadership drained the team. Turnover was constant, and morale was low. That experience taught me one clear lesson: I never wanted to make people feel the way I felt working there. In other words, bad leaders can motivate us to avoid their mistakes.
But great leaders? They do something more.
Anthony with his mentor Mike Roman, founder of Catersource
I’ll never forget my mentor, Mike Roman, founder of Catersource. Mike believed in people before they believed in themselves. He encouraged me to get up on stage for the first time, gave feedback with care, and led with generosity. His leadership didn’t just make me want to avoid being “bad.” It inspired me to aspire to something higher. His example pushed me toward greatness.
At our Heart Leadership Workshop last week, we asked attendees to reflect on the leaders in their lives and the actions that shaped them. One of our participants, Jordan Barnachea from Catered Too Catering, said something that summed it up perfectly: “Bad leaders inspire you to be a good leader. Good leaders inspire you to be a great leader.”
That’s the influence we should all be striving for. Not just to keep people from walking away discouraged, but to lift them up in ways that unlock their full potential, and maybe even more than they imagined for themselves.
Anthony and the Catered Too team during the MIBE Heart Leadership Workshop
Keep MIBE-ing!
Anthony Lambatos
Founder, MIBE Hospitality Culture Training
Owner, Footers Catering
P.S. Want to experience great leadership? Join us at our MIBE Summit in January.