The screaming and yelling.
While this was not an actual boss but rather a business partner with majority shares in the company… It was one hell of an experience to figure this guy out.
I was young and fresh out of college at the time. I had quite a bit of experience dealing with people since we did have our own business but this guy was something else.
In the beginning, all was well, as is the way with most partnerships. Slowly it became clear that our partner had some issues. Now no one is perfect, but this guy would barge into the middle of the plant and yell.
The yelling.
I assume he needed to be heard and he needed to make sure that everyone knew that he was the boss! This kind of behaviour was terrifying. We were not used to yelling and screaming. As the days and months went on this became worse and worse.
The strangest thing was that generally in one-on-one conversations the man was nice. A bit loud and often remarked inappropriately at certain things. Also on a personal note, if a worker asked for a small loan or advance on a pay check he was the nicest man. He seemed to love the attention and often helped employees.
The power-trip
This man would make suppliers wait for a check outside his office for hours on end. All he had to do was sign the check, call his secretary and hand out the supplier’s money. No, this man would make the people wait, call them in the office after they had sat an hour or two in the lobby and yell at them either about the price, the service or a hiccup they had in the past.
He was on a power trip. As I got to know him more and more it was evident that he had a Napoleon complex. Not because he was short even though Napoleon was not that short. However, he must have felt very insecure in his little world.
Kindness.
It was interesting how he could be kind to employees on a one-on-one basis. Yet in a large setting, he wanted to be heard and listened to. He loved life, he loved his wine and his winery. Outside of business he was a fantastic person but had a Jekyll and Hyde personality in business.
With his personality, the saying, “Never mix business with pleasure” rang very true.
One day we took out a client to dinner and then to the Phantom of the Opera. He asked me to drive the client home and I did. It was 2 am by the time I got home. I was usually at work by 6:45. I knew him well and I knew that he would check if I was at work on time despite the late night. Sure enough, he called the plant early and I saw on the caller ID it was him. I picked up and he just said “oh you are in.” I explained I was tired and all but yes, I was here. His answer was, “If you want to be a big boy at night you need to be a big boy in the morning”
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