The New York Times
Preoccupations
How Bad Apples Infect the Tree
By ROBERT I. SUTTON
Published: November 27, 2010
Excerpts:
Even among the hardiest people, jerk-infested workplaces can take a severe toll. As the psychologist Roy Baumeister and his colleagues showed in their article “Bad Is Stronger Than Good,” negative people and events pack a disproportionately large wallop on our moods, well-being, physical health and relationships.
Widespread meanness not only damages people; it also increases costs and undermines performance by driving out good employees at alarming rates. Numerous studies have also shown that people respond to demeaning and disrespectful bosses and co-workers by calling in sick more often, making fewer suggestions, working less hard and doing lower-quality work.
One nasty person can bring down a whole group. That can happen because the group members devote more energy to dealing with the bad apple and less energy to the task at hand. Moreover, anger and hostility are contagious, so the whole group can become infected.
When I asked Ruth how she kept her sanity amid the meanness at the company, she told me about some advice she had received as a teenager from a river rafting guide: If you fall out of the boat, don’t fight the rapids. Just rely on your life vest and float with your feet out in front of you. That way, if you are thrown up against the rocks, you can use your feet to push off, and you’ll protect your head and conserve energy.
Ruth explained that she used the Satan’s Cesspool strategy to survive those nasty meetings some 30 years later. Verbal barbs bounced off of her, just as the rocks had bounced off her feet long ago. When the personal attacks, dirty looks and finger-pointing commenced, she stretched out her feet in front of her under the table, and told herself, “I just got thrown out of the boat by these jerks, but I know how to survive.”
Instead of seeing herself as a victim, Ruth felt strong and in control. She shared her strategy with fellow victims in the office, and it helped them endure the slings and arrows as well.
Ruth’s strategy was effective because it enabled her to reframe the nastiness so she could become emotionally detached — to “prevent the poison from touching my soul,” as she put it.
In a healthy workplace, being emotionally engaged is great, but when you can’t escape a disrespectful environment, practicing the fine art of indifference and detachment can help you endure the onslaught.
Detachment can also help you to quell the temptation to respond in kind — and thus avoid fueling a vicious circle of hostility.
The Satan’s Cesspool strategy also helped Ruth to avoid wasting her emotional energy by battling against forces she couldn’t control. She reserved her energy for times when it could do some good, like helping others survive the onslaught and fighting small battles she could win against the worst of the local bullies.
To prevent employees from leaving, as Ruth did, bosses and their organizations may find that it’s more important to eliminate the negative than to accentuate the positive. Research suggests that if you lead a group where nastiness is pervasive, you should start by reforming the bad influences and, if necessary, expelling them.
Access Content Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/28/jobs/28pre.html?ref=todayspaper
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http://dreamlearndobecome.blogspot.com This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
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