I have sat across tables from brilliant people who once loved their jobs.
Not average employees.
Not lazy ones.
Not people looking for excuses.
These were people who stayed late without being asked, fixed problems that were not in their job description, and carried companies on their backs while management slept peacefully.
And yet, they left.
Not because the job was hard.
Not because the pay was small.
Not because the office was far.
They left because of one person.
The manager.
I know this story because I hear it too often. As an HR consultant, as a recruiter, as someone who has had to clean up the mess left behind by bad leadership, I can tell you this without hesitation: good employees endure bad jobs, but they cannot survive bad managers.
Let me explain.
Most employees do not wake up wanting to resign.
They wake up wanting to do meaningful work, earn honest pay, and be treated with dignity.
But bad managers slowly suffocate that desire.
Not with one big explosion.
With small daily wounds.
The First Wound: Disrespect Disguised as Authority
Bad managers confuse title with superiority.
They shout instead of correcting.
They embarrass instead of guiding.
They speak to adults like children and expect loyalty in return.
I have seen managers insult staff publicly and later ask, “Why is morale low?”
I have watched people shrink in meetings because their ideas were mocked once too often.
Respect is not optional. The moment it disappears, commitment starts packing its bags.
The Second Wound: Micromanagement That Kills Confidence
There is a special frustration that comes from being hired for your competence and then treated like you know nothing.
Bad managers hover.
They control every email.
They question every decision.
They turn simple tasks into approval marathons.
Over time, employees stop thinking.
They stop innovating.
They stop caring.
Why put in effort when your judgment is never trusted?
The Third Wound: Favoritism and Office Politics
Nothing drains a workplace faster than unfairness.
When promotions go to friends, not performers.
When certain people can fail repeatedly without consequence.
When others must be perfect just to be tolerated.
Good employees notice everything. They may not complain loudly, but they quietly disengage.
Merit ignored today becomes resignation tomorrow.
The Fourth Wound: Unrealistic Expectations With No Support
Bad managers demand results without resources.
They want speed without structure.
Excellence without training.
Growth without guidance.
Deadlines are thrown around like threats. Mistakes are punished, not corrected.
Eventually, employees burn out, not because they are weak, but because they are constantly set up to fail.
The Fifth Wound: Silence Where Feedback Should Be
Good employees want to grow.
They want to know:
Am I doing well?
Where can I improve?
What does the future look like for me here?
Bad managers do not communicate. Or worse, they only speak when something goes wrong.
No feedback creates anxiety.
Anxiety creates resentment.
Resentment creates exits.
The Final Straw: Taking Credit, Avoiding Responsibility
This one hurts deeply.
When managers take credit for team wins but disappear when things go wrong, trust dies.
Good employees do not expect perfection from leaders.
They expect honesty and accountability.
When leadership lacks integrity, people leave with their dignity intact.
Here Is the Truth Many Managers Refuse to Accept
People will endure workload.
They will endure pressure.
They will even endure limited pay for a season.
But they will not endure being humiliated, ignored, mistrusted, or treated as disposable.
When a good employee resigns, it is rarely sudden.
It is a decision made quietly after many ignored moments.
A Word for Managers Reading This
Leadership is not about control.
It is not about fear.
It is not about reminding people who is boss.
If people are leaving your team repeatedly, pause and look inward.
Titles do not make you a leader.
People staying, growing, and thriving under you do.
This Is a Wake-Up Call
If you are a manager, understand this clearly: you are either the reason people grow or the reason they quit.
And if you are an employee silent suffering under bad leadership, know this: you are not difficult, ungrateful, or weak. Sometimes, you are simply under the wrong manager.
If you are a business owner, founder, or manager who wants to stop losing your best people, then it is time to fix leadership, not recruitment.
At Milash Brand Digital, we help organizations build people-centered leadership systems, train managers properly, and create workplaces where good employees want to stay.
Do not wait until resignations expose what feedback already warned you about.
Reach out.
Let us help you lead better, manage right, and retain the talent your business depends on.
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