What if your leadership habits were the problem-and no one around you felt safe enough to say it? 20 Habits of Highly Unsuccessful and Ineffective Leaders is the brutally honest, occasionally uncomfortable, and surprisingly useful guide to the behaviors that sabotage teams, frustrate talent, and quietly wreck careers. From micromanaging and blame-shifting to chasing shiny objects and avoiding feedback, these habits are more common than most leaders would like to admit. This isn't your typical leadership book. It's not a lecture. It's a mirror. Whether you picked it up yourself (good on you) or someone on your team gifted it to you (take the hint), you're holding a practical roadmap for spotting the habits that hurt your influence-and learning what to do instead. Each chapter breaks down one of the 20 toxic habits that derail otherwise capable leaders, including: Thinking you have all the answers Reacting instead of responding Confusing control with clarity Hiring people who make you feel smart-instead of people who actually are Focusing on weaknesses instead of strengths You'll also get practical tips on how to recognize these patterns in yourself, what to do if your boss has them, and how one bad habit-left unchecked-can undo all your strengths. 'My boss scored 19 out of 20. Could you send him a copy?' -Anon Written by global leadership coach Gordon Tredgold, this book is based on the viral article that struck a nerve with readers in over 20 countries-and became one of the most-shared leadership pieces of the last decade. It's direct. It's practical. And it might just save your career.
Gordon Tredgold is a globally recognized leadership expert, executive coach, speaker, and author with over 30 years of experience leading high-performance teams, delivering complex transformation programs, and helping organizations unlock breakthrough results. He has led international teams across five continents, managed multimillion-dollar projects, and helped companies save hundreds of millions through smarter strategy and better leadership. Gordon has worked in industries ranging from telecom and finance to health care and manufacturing-often stepping into high-pressure, high-stakes environments where results mattered most. In one case, he delivered a $350 million improvement. In another, he led a team spread across five continents, four generations, and seven time zones-completely remotely. Gordon's leadership style is built around clarity, simplicity, and focus. Over the course of his career, he's learned that great leadership isn't about charisma or complexity-it's about creating trust, building momentum, and doing the small things that make a big difference. And, just as importantly, it's about avoiding the small things that slowly destroy your culture, your credibility, and your team's motivation. That idea became the basis for his viral 2016 article, '20 Habits of Highly Ineffective and Unsuccessful Leaders', which struck a nerve and inspired the creation of this book. Since then, Gordon has helped thousands of leaders around the world see their own blind spots and make lasting changes. His coaching and workshops focus on the practical, the real, and the immediately applicable-no fluff, no theory, just the truth leaders need to hear (sometimes whether they want to or not). He's written over 2,000 articles on leadership, performance, and personal growth, many as a featured columnist for Inc., Entrepreneur, and Business Insider. His work has been translated into 23 languages and shared by global brands and leadership platforms. He's been named one of the Top 10 Global Leadership Experts by Global Gurus and was a finalist for the Management Book of the Year. Gordon has delivered keynotes and leadership programs in over 30 countries, from boardrooms in New York to conferences in Nairobi. He has also given a TEDx Talk in French and once led a multi-month project entirely in German (which he describes as a 'bold and humbling linguistic experiment'). He has lived in the UK, Holland, Belgium, the U.S., Spain, Germany, and the Czech Republic-and has led diverse teams in almost every cultural context imaginable. Through it all, Gordon has learned that good leadership is rare, but not complicated-and that some of the best leadership lessons come from watching what not to do. That's why this book doesn't just celebrate great leadership habits; it holds up a mirror to the ones that quietly sabotage results, frustrate teams, and erode trust. He wrote 20 Habits of Highly Unsuccessful and Ineffective Leaders for every team member who's ever wanted to tell their boss the truth, and for every leader who's brave enough to ask, 'Is it me?' When he's not writing, coaching, or speaking, Gordon is a husband, a father of four, a long-suffering sports fan, and a passionate advocate for common sense in leadership. His goal? To help develop a million leaders-and to make leadership better, one habit at a time.
