During the festival of Dussehra in India, the killing of the ten headed demon king Ravana is celebrated everywhere. It commemorates the victory of Good over Evil. In the workplace too, there are ten key demons or attitudes that affect workplace productivity, performance and engagement. The managers and employees have to consciously attempt to create a culture that destroys or reduces the influence of these attitudes:
1. Unforgiveness
It is very likely that both managers and employees will hurt each other and other colleagues while working together.
The hurt is caused when either party ignores each other, does not listen, talk harshly or not involve etc. The issue is when they carry this hurt in their hearts for long and are unwilling to forgive and give in.
They wait for opportune time to cause roadblocks for each other.It may be demonstrated in caustic feedback or appraisal downgrading or purposefully not giving their best contribution. The deep hurts and wounds make their hearts heavy and they don’t feel like talking to each other openly. This in turn affects both engagement and performance of employees.
Practicing forgiveness though difficult in action can be done by a deep belief that others are as humans like us. They also hurt like the way we hurt each other by our words and actions. So can we give each other a chance and the benefits of doubt.
2. Pride
It is demonstrated when both managers and employees are unwilling to accept mistakes. It also shows up when either parties are not willing to learn from each other and from other colleagues. There is one upmanship. They become judgmental.They purposefully withhold information to show their importance.
Deep down in the heart, there has to be a belief that we all need each other and have to learn from each other and we are not always right. Considering others better than us and asking for others help is one way to overcome workplace pride. This in turn improves productivity and engagement.
3. Jealousy
Research has found that employees feel discontented if they find that their salaries are lower than others. Even if they are earning fat salary, they are always comparing their salary, projects they are working on and possessions with others. This in turn affects their engagement at work.
Instead of focusing on what they can do to use their time and talents to add significant value to themselves and their work, they engage in workplace gossips. They either try to find out from grapevine who is earning what , which projects are going to whom and who will get promotion. So comparing oneself with others causes unnecessary jealousy.
Unless you are being very unfairly treated, there is no need to compare and feel bad that in turn affects performance and engagement at work.
4. Greed
Both employees and management want to amass more wealth even if they are earning decent salaries and earnings. They forget that constant increase in salaries year-on-year also lead to increase in cost of the products and services which in turn affects the end customers or clients.
In certain cases even managers at senior levels ask for bribes from their vendors to get them into the organization. This in turn becomes unfair to high quality vendors whose products and services could be missed out in the organization.
Similarly, management should expect reasonably high productivity without making an employee burn-out. So both parties need to have reasonable expectations from each other instead of seeing how to extract more from each other out of greed.
5. unkindness
This is demonstrated when both employees and managers are not sensitive to each others pressures and don’t appreciate each other.
They withhold giving each other positive strokes and appreciation. If both employees and managers just learn to appreciate each other a lot better engaging environment can be created without spending so much on engagement events.
It has to be remembered the behaviours and actions what we appreciate will continue to appreciate.
6. Laziness
We all have heard and learnt that Work is Worship. However back at workplace, it is shown in the form of procrastination or delay in taking decisions.
If one puts their heart and soul using their best talents and skills to add value to their work and projects, it will make them more happy inside. Sometimes employees think by doing less, they will be happier.
Instead what makes any human more engaged and happy is when he/she contributes their best both by their hard work and effective application of their capabilities. This in turn affects the overall performance,productivity and engagement at work.
7. Anger
As shared earlier in unforgiveness, if both employees and managers carry hurts and wounds it will be demonstrated in anger. There will be constant arguments, conflicts and exchange of harsh words.
Even purposeful vengeance by not telling the truth to the managers to teach him/her a lesson happens at workplace.This in turn sours the working environment and causes more disengagement.
Managers can allow for forums where employees can anonymously vent out their negative emotions and anger and try to resolve those issues in a practical and humble way.
8. Disrespect
It is demonstrated when employees or managers are unwilling to carry out the instructions or decisions of their seniors purposefully.
Offcourse if the bosses are grossly violating values and rules of the organization, one can politely refuse to obey.
However in most cases, the seniors need to be given their due respect by not criticizing their actions so often and being judgmental of them.
Show respect during meeting by politely raising doubts and concerns during team meetings than talking behind their back or outside the meetings.
9. Selfishness
Both managers and employees need to see their work as a way to serve each other and their customers.
They are not there only for selfish reasons to get their salaries and promotions but to serve others using their talents and skills.
If we could continue to develop this attitude that we all are here on this earth for a purpose to serve others then we will certainly learn more and improve our performance and productivity to the next highest level.
10. Lust
This is demonstrated in the way how the lady colleagues or even male colleagues are unfairly treated in the workplace due to not giving in to sexual favours of their senior colleagues or bosses.
Many seniors misuse their power and authority to make unwanted requests and also appraise unfairly and do not allow for promotions if their lustful demands are not met.
It is also seen in various forms of mental harassment which in turn affects the performance, productivity and engagement particularly of the lady employees and managers.
Let us all collectively resolve to destroy these demons or attitudes from our workplace as shareholders, employers, managers and employees during this season of victory of good over evil.
George Zacharia has written this post based on his research of workplace observations, experiences and real-time issues shared by managers and participants during diagnostic studies and interventions.