When you first join, there may be about a month-long honeymoon period during which “he” will acknowledge your professionalism.

After a month, things are different. The leader does not know the company’s direction, lacks expertise in the field, and is unclear about the market positioning. All day in meetings, he talks about stories from his past work as an agent.

Because he also lacks expertise in the new business area but cannot let go of his leadership posture, he has no ability to learn from others. He hired professional managers but refused to let them take charge, leaving the departments below completely directionless. The entire company is as scattered as sand. As it enters its second year of operation, performance remains dismal, not to mention whether employees receive profit sharing.

Moreover, I have never seen a direct-selling business hold meetings every day and control employees with rigid, formulaic rules—going so far as to violate labor laws. OPP overtime, event overtime, and business-trip expenses are either not paid or are delayed. Even compensatory leave cannot be applied for and used until one full month after it is granted, because everything is treated as a responsibility-based system.

In meetings, he wants Plan A today, uses Approach B tomorrow, and changes to Plan C the day after. On top of that, he believes that any proposal requiring money is unnecessary, including marketing, business presentations, and product experiences, among others. As a result, payments owed to vendors or expenses advanced by employees are left unpaid or delayed. It is advisable that all proposals submitted require no money, and that the company simply makes do with its existing equipment.

Do not come in with an overly grand vision. After the honeymoon period, regardless of rank or professional field, everyone is treated the same in his eyes—as members of a traditional circus. With one statement that you are unprofessional, have the wrong way of thinking, or have no ideas, he directly overturns everything you have done, because he believes that he is the one who taught everyone how to do it, not you.

The most frightening thing is the boss’s behavior of deliberately fostering resentment. He asks A to attend a one-on-one meeting, but uses it to talk about what is wrong with B. If he does not like B, he should simply ask B to leave the company; there is no need to engage in this kind of workplace bullying.

Only after joining do you understand what it means to grow old with nothing but talk: trading on seniority and being unable to keep up with the times. Every day, he remains alone in his own world, unable to accept new changes. He talks about a huge pie, but delivers not even crumbs. Day after day, he returns to square one.