SHORTCUT TO LEADERSHIP

Survival tips for Parasite leaders who dream to make it big at the expense of others

12 Survival tips:
Leadership is described as the “process of social
influence, in which one person can enlist the aid and
support of others in the accomplishment of a common
task”.1 For obvious reasons I am overwhelmed not
just by the scope of this subject, but by varied
perceptions of it by people with different 3. Deprive first and give later:
backgrounds. This is neither an attempt at judging
the leadership traits that one generally comes
across nor an effort to promote the shortcuts. This is value, don’t give anything easy. A best
only an observation and the reader is advised to be
rational while choosing to follow any of those
mentioned below.
1. Break the team:
In the first place, a parasite leader shall never provided. The catch is here. While paying make
allow his/her subordinates to be a team, for a
strong team is a threat to such leadership.
Remember ‘you can rule only when your
subordinates are divided’. Thus ‘break your
subordinates into groups and sub groups’ and
they will have no time to think of your
contribution. Pitch one against the other until 4. Don’t give any instruction or approval in writing:
they challenge each other and produce
competing results but have no time to think of
you. The weaker they are as team, the stronger
you are as a leader to be sure of your survival.
2. Promote boss worship:
Promoting boss worship is the key to
establishing yourself as unchallenged authority
in the organization. Be quick in recognizing the
subordinates who don’t have a strong backbone
or a value system of their own and are easy to
be influenced. Reward them for their loyalty by
giving them out of turn promotions and
appreciation in the team meetings. Show that
you prefer some over others. For ex: If you are
not cost conscious, occasionally take them out for
1
Chemers, M. M. (2002). Meta-cognitive, social, and
emotional intelligence of transformational leadership:
Efficacy and Effectiveness. In R. E. Riggio, S. E. Murphy,
F. J. Pirozzolo (Eds.), Multiple Intelligences and
Leadership.
food (not with the team). You can also be
confident of introducing them to your superiors
for you lose nothing by doing so rather they can
be more loyal to you. This will give enough
indications to the others and the weak hearts
will fall in line.
If you want your subordinates to know your
example to understand this strategy:
Subordinate X leaves the organization and you
ask Subordinate Y to take up additional
responsibility. Y does this work for 3 months
without complaining and at the end of the year
you give him additional amount for the services
sure that you personally handover the cover
and tell him that you fought with management
for the extra payment…he is your slave for the
rest of his life and will never realize that it was
his right to have that benefit.
Giving approvals or instructions is the last thing
that you should do. You are free to give
opinions and suggestions orally but never give
them in writing, for they will incriminate you one
day. The other advantage is also that you can
always find someone’s shoulder when things
don’t go well or as planned. As the leader of
the team no one except you can claim the
responsibility if everything is sunny and rosy.
5. Have no sympathy/empathy for your
employees:
Having sympathy/empathy is the greatest
weakness that a parasite leader can afford to
have for his employees. Once the employees
realize that you are sympathetic towards their
professional or personal issues, there is every
chance of them utilizing it to escape from their
responsibilities and to make excuses. There shall
be no exception in reaching the ‘targets’…even
 SHORTCUT TO LEADERSHIP
Survival tips for Parasite leaders who dream to make it big at the expense of others

over the loss of a near and dear one. In such 8. Use the organization:
circumstances, you can even enlighten them on
the fleeting nature of relationships by quoting a Use every opportunity that your organization
personal example of how you chose work over gives you to build your own contacts and
offering a final visit to your family member on recognition. If the organization decides to give
the death bed. 20% salary increment in a particular year, tell
all your subordinates that you fought hard with
6. Make promises…you lose no thing: management to get it that far. Whenever, you
represent the organization in any public
Remember, off late no employee works in an platform, let your individual worthiness be
organization for more than 2-3 years. They visible to everyone and avoid using name of the
tend to explore other organizations to grow. organization. It is your right to utilize the
Use this to your advantage. To entice them to resources and brand image of the organization
work with you, make all the promises that you to meet your personal requirements such as
can…about potential growth in the bank loans, admission to your children in
organization, high perks for performance and premier institutes etc., in return for the services
other benefits… anything that comes to your you give to it.
mind. It will take more than a year (one
performance appraisal) to realize nothing that 9. Get rid of ‘people with voice’:
you said will actually come true. You can easily
retain them for one more year showing the ‘People with voice’ are the most dangerous
business plan of the organization and its people to have in the organization. They often
expected earnings in the years to come. By the have strong opinion and they are rational in
time they reach end of second year, you would their thinking and systematic in their work. Other
have already sucked up all their energy and flock in the team will easily get influenced if you
even if they leave after that, you have nothing encourage such subordinates to voice their
to lose. In the changed context, you would have opinions in the team meetings. More innovative
already made them irrelevant in the job. and practical ideas on how to get rid of them:

7. Your priorities first and the last to your
subordinates:
Drill the minds of your subordinates,
periodically with the fact that their only goal is
to help you reach the organizational goals
(read professional/personal). Remember, it is
you who are paying for the services of the
subordinate and not the organization (directly).
Thus the subordinates shall serve only you and
your priorities should always be theirs (which
will obviously help reach the organizational
goals).
• Kill their soul silently:
Give them no work-it’s the easiest way
to kill a thinking man. Don’t ever give
them challenging tasks, for they will
always challenge the challenges.
• Cut off their potential support systems:
Reduce scope of work. After a while,
you can go around claiming that they
have no work to do. Make sure that the
same message is passed on to everyone
in the organization and keep repeating
it whenever you can, so that you are
effectively cutting off his/her potential
support systems in the organization and
preparing ground for smooth burial.
• Show your magnanimity:
 SHORTCUT TO LEADERSHIP
Survival tips for Parasite leaders who dream to make it big at the expense of others

Don’t hesitate to talk behind them,
especially with your best subordinates.
Give them an impression that you have
given life and career to the thinking 10. Be friendly with the thinking person:
person, despite having no skills and it is
your magnanimity that is retaining them
in the organization. By this, you are
effectively conveying your generosity
and giving clues to the weak minds on
what boss can do if he/she not pleased.
• Be prepared for offensive action:
Don’t expect the thinking person to
spread anything about you in the sector
but be prepared for it and act first.
Know their contacts in the sector and
keep planting stories about their work.
If you don’t have specific complaints to
make about their work, blame it on 11. Don’t hire a person whose skills might match
their attitude (e.g.: say he/she is
arrogant/or intellectual arrogance etc.)
Remember, no one can actually
measure or verify what you say. Thus
no one would believe even if they try to
show your true colors at a later point or
there is every chance of coming to a
conclusion that they are merely
complaining out of frustration. In both 12. Maximum utilization of services:
the cases your image is safe or to top it
all you might even gain some sympathy.
• Last nail on the coffin:
If all the above things have not worked,
try this offensive move. Ensure that all
new recruits (less experienced and less
skilled than the thinking person) are
recruited above him/her and bring
them in with high rise (over their current
salary), which should obviously be more
than the thinking man. Pass instructions
to have him/her report to the new
recruit. This should effectively kill the
initiative of the thinking person.
At the end of the day remember, thinking
person is the only threat to you in the
organization or outside. While employing all
the above strategies be sure to remain friendly
with him/her. Meet them occasionally at their
work station and appear to be jovial with them
before others. Always be in talking terms until
you get rid of them. Once they leave, you can
call them over phone one fine day and say
sorry for all that had happened and believe
that all your sins are forgiven.
your job profile:
Ensure that there is a huge gap between you
and the next level in the organization. Build no
second leadership. The parasite leader shall
never hire a person whose skills might remotely
match his/her own job profile.
Underutilization of services is an unpardonable
sin. A parasite leader shall always be prudent
in utilizing the available knowledge and
expertise of sub ordinates. By being bestowed
upon the gift of leadership, you are given the
unquestionable power over the utilization of
services of your subordinates. It is the only way
to realize not just your personal and
professional goals but the goals of your kith
and kin as well. Start giving small personal
works and the best subordinates will always
capture the opportunity to please the boss.

Disclaimer: I am personally against following any of the above and strongly advise any right thinking
professional to desist from taking this path, for man is not born for just money and position.