I believe that scary leaders emerge for two reasons:

1. They are not able to communicate Empathy to those they lead
2. They have lost Perspective of the lives of those they lead

Scary leaders can show up in a variety of ways. Let’s look at seven types of scary leaders:

1. The lead-by-fear leader. Under this scary leader, criticism is common. Threats of demotion or job loss are common. Team members don’t work for the organization’s vision but for the fear of humiliation and salary loss.
2. The selfish leader. This type of scary leader relishes the spotlight. They take credit rather than give credit. They hoard responsibility and information. They want everyone looking at them and relying on them. They hate when team members get acknowledged for their work without mention of them.
3. The micromanaging leader. The micromanaging leader struggles to trust others. Because of this, he or she is in the details of everyone’s work. They think that they are ensuring quality work, but they end up slowing everyone down. They hinder, instead of propel, their teams.
4. The emotionally unpredictable leader. You never know how the conversation will go with this type of scary leader. One day, everything seems great. The next day, or maybe the next hour, they’re irate. What happened? No one really knows. Suddenly, everything is wrong. Team members walk on eggshells, not knowing what will set the leader off next.
5. The over-confident leader. Confidence is good. Over-confidence can be scary. Over-confident leaders tend to dismiss differing opinions, even from trusted sources. They take excessive risks. They assume that past success means future success. Their confidence convinces team members to make or go along with bad decisions. And worst of all, they rarely see themselves as over-confident.
6. The under-confident leader. Over-confidence is scary. But so is under-confidence. Under-confident leaders are unsure of themselves, constantly questioning their own ability in an unhealthy manner. They tend to be overly concerned with others’ opinions. They focus on the negative, struggle to make decisions, and let past decision define them. Needless to say, under-confident leaders struggle to gain a following. 
7. The visionless leader. This type of scary leader has no idea where he or she should take the team. They allow their team to wander aimlessly. Team members tend to get either get frustrated or bored.

The ethical and biblical mandate requires us to manage well those we lead. A leader who strives to be the best steward of his or her team will rarely be classified as a scary leader.

So don’t be a scary leader. Serve and steward your team well.

Genesis of this article – Art Rainer 2016.