In the normal course of managing your workplace, regardless of your industry, sooner or later you’re probably going to feel like complaining. This is perfectly normal. In fact, my Marines used to joke around that it was their moral responsibility. Even in a well-run office with happy employees, there may come a time when you just have to get something off your chest, simply must speak your mind, let people know about the latest injustice.
Here’s my advice: don’t.
Now, that’s not to say that you shouldn’t give feedback on situations where there’s room for improvement. If your process isn’t as efficient as it could be, or you feel like your manager needs to polish his communication skills, there are ways to address this and it’s important to do so, if your workplace culture welcomes constructive feedback. But there’s that one little word there, constructive, that is so often set aside.
Addressing errors, inconsistencies, or shortcomings should be done with improvement in mind. If you’re going to criticize out loud, be it a person or process or situation, then the professional thing to do is suggest an alternative. This applies almost universally, whether you don’t like the way your boss is talking to you, the way your employee interacts with a customer, or perhaps your company’s policy on certain subjects.
Let’s consider this from a selfish perspective first. Sure, it feels a little indulgent to get caught up in your frustrations and share them with others and just to vent a bit, but you risk falling into a trap that’s hard to escape. Once your colleagues, employees or manager begin to perceive you as an excessively negative person it can be very difficult to change their minds.
Like it or not, their perception will color their personal interactions with you and probably the professional as well. Complaining about your boss to your peers, or worse to your direct reports, is not going to win any of them over. It’s going to make you look like a whiner. The same goes for tearing down your employees without laying out for them a clear path toward improvement. They might learn from their mistakes, but they’ll definitely take you for a micromanaging jerk.
Now let’s look at the bigger picture. Let’s say for a moment that you have a real problem with a situation at work - maybe it personally rubs you the wrong way, maybe it’s a legitimate professional concern - and you start trashing your organization or policy in front of others. This is a deceptively easy habit to develop, and before you know it you’re the toxic influence lowering morale in general for the people around you. In addition to the damage this does to your personal reputation, you risk undermining the overall perception of your organization with both your employees and your customers. How much will associates trust your organization if its leadership doesn’t buy into the vision? Will your customers pick up on the sense of negativity hinted at in their dealings with your team?
What to do, what to do? Remember that word we used earlier, constructive. Lead by example and set the tone by focusing on solutions instead of your problems. Identify your issues without dwelling on them. Direct your energy toward figuring out what can be handled more efficiently or communicated more professionally in a positive light, and you’ll find your audience much more receptive. Problems still need to be addressed, but the manner in which you talk about them will dictate your results as much as the action plan itself.
Have you felt the influence of a perpetually negative person in your workplace? How did you deal with them? Do you wish you had done something different? Please feel free to contribute to the discussion in the comments section! If you’ve enjoyed spending a few minutes reading “The Boss Perspective,” subscribe and share this link with your friends, Like me on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter @BossPerspective.
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