Do you wake up every morning and say I wish I didn’t have to go to work today or you out rightly don’t like being in your office or workplace? Your work place may actually be having a negative effect on you and this has a tendency to reduce your moral, productivity and of course your health as well.
The bottom line for you and your company is that when the atmosphere is negative in your workplace, productivity and efficiency will be greatly affected and employees will be less likely to be creative in tackling issues that may arise in their course of work. This will in turn lead to low output and loss of revenue. So it is very important that work place negativity is checked and stopped both in the interest of the workers and the organization.
To be able to minimize work place negativity, it’s important to understand the causes and effects.
Many studies determined that the reasons for most of the employee negativity mainly included these following matters,
- Too much workload that is impractically impossible to finish within the given time frame.
- Distrust in the managers ability in leading the team
- Longer-term job security and retirement concerns
- Boredom and lack of challenge in the workplace
- Poor remuneration and lack of appreciation for work done.
- Gossip within the team
- Poor attitude towards work from colleagues
And the effects of the causes includes:
- Lack of Creativity
- Lack of Communication
- Lack of Teamwork
- Lack of Confidence
Prevention is better than cure, and just like some contagious diseases, workplace negativity can spread among team members and quietly shut the business down. Here are tips in combating workplace negativity.
- Employees should be encouraged to be creative and flexible in carrying out their job. Employee’s opinions on how the job affects them should be considered at all times. Employees should understand work place policies and culture in areas such as work hours, salaries, dress codes, job conditions, and working statuses. These factors are unique to each person. Unexpected changes to them can cause negative responses from members of the team.
- Leadership is key. As a leader you should Implement proper leadership and a vital framework, including purpose, spirit, values, and goals. Your employees should be able to share in your vision and aspirations and also to see themselves as part of the organization. This is because people want to see themselves as part of something greater than themselves. If the know the future goals of the company and the role they have to play in making it happen, they can contribute immensely.
- There should be proper rewards and recognition so people feel their participation is valued when they perform exceptionally well. The power of relevant rewards and recognition for a positive workplace is exceptional. The importance of recognition cannot be over emphasized. When workers are appreciated for a job well done, they feel valued and energized to do more.