Lack of communication, lack of leadership, or lack of organized systems that facilitate conflict resolution are all common causes of negativity in the office. When negativity runs rampant in the office, it means that people aren’t able to work to their best abilities. It stops them from being their best self at work. As a result, employees aren’t able to deliver an exceptional customer experience.

Negative attitudes threaten teamwork and exasperate misunderstandings and communication breakdowns. Additionally, negative attitudes create an environment where truth is harder to believe than rumors. Above all, negative attitudes are contagious. When left unaddressed, negativity destroys morale, degrades productivity, and causes excessive employee turnover. Finally, negativity could present legal issues if it devolves into harassment.

Remove negativity from your office with these five tips.

Fortunately, you can remove negativity and revive a culture of positivity. When organizational leaders intervene, they promote a healthy culture and restore trust. To stop negativity from sapping the energy out of your organization and diverting attention from productivity and performance, leaders need to be proactive in maintaining a culture of positivity. These tips will help.

1. Leverage the core values of the organization.

Core values are the fundamental beliefs of the organization. They guide behavior and help people understand the difference between right and wrong. They are an unwavering guide that you are on the right path to achieving your goals. Your organization’s core values are a moral compass that guides how your employees will interact with one another.

For that reason, leverage the core values of the company to eradicate negativity and restore positivity in your office. To do this, link behaviors to the core values when redirecting negative actions as well as praising positive ones.

2. Resolve conflicts quickly.

Unresolved conflict is a primary cause of negativity in the office. Disagreements will happen over business practices, how to proceed on a project, or whether or not microwave popcorn should be allowed. Usually, people are great at resolving conflict without much drama. However, When people are afraid of conflict, issues will build and paralyze them, which causes negativity.

The easiest way to resolve conflict is to leverage the organization’s core values during discussions with the parties involved. Meet with each person individually to gather each side and then bring everyone together to discuss as a group. Make sure everyone has their turn to speak. If they are unable to reach an understanding, you as the leader need to make the call. Or, each party has to agree to disagree while at the same time remaining professional with each other.

3. Reduce the gossip and revive positivity.

No other method of communication spreads negativity faster than gossip. It happens when people spend large amounts of time together. Gossip is hard to detect because it happens in smaller groups. Therefore, you have to say something when you see something, or in this case, hear it.

When you identify an employee who is spreading gossip, communicate directly with them. Help them see how their actions are going against the organization’s values. Help them understand the impact their behavior is having and the consequences if it continues. Mass emails and scolding everyone doesn’t address the culprits, and it will negatively affect the overall office.

4. Get loud with positive language to eradicate negativity.

It is so easy for leaders to get sucked into focusing on the negative. They spend more time focused on what people are doing wrong and not nearly enough time reinforcing what people are doing right. Leaders who spend more time rewarding the right behaviors rather than redirecting the bad promote a more positive workplace.

Catch people doing things right and get loud about it. Here again, you can leverage the core values of the organization. Publicly recognizing those who embody the core values has a huge impact. Even more so, recognizing them as soon as it happens, deeply enforces the importance of living the core values. So to eradicate negativity and revive a culture of positivity, get loud with positive language.

5. Lead by example to revive a culture of positivity.

None of these things will matter in reviving a culture of positivity if you aren’t leading by example. According to Gallup, managers account for 70 percent of variance in employee engagement, and that includes negativity. When employees witness the leader complaining and being negative, they will follow. If negative people are rewarded through stretch assignments or advancement, it encourages more of that behavior.

Reward the right behaviors and model the way. It is the one thing you can truly control that will cultivate a culture of positivity and eradicate negativity from the organization. Have difficult conversations that redirect negativity. Think twice before sharing negative opinions about co-workers. Demonstrate civility in all of your interactions. Above all, help your team reposition their negative feelings about a co-worker to ones that are positive and productive.

Most people don’t want to spend the majority of their day in a negative environment. Additionally, being surrounded by negativity at work will cause negativity to blend into their home life. Leaders who provide rewards and recognition when their team demonstrates positivity will see an increase in morale and productivity. Negativity is harmful to everyone in the workplace, but it can be eradicated by following these tips.

Last updated on June 3rd, 2020 at 03:26 am