Create a no-whinge, solution-focussed culture
People are often frustrated by their culture. Many workplaces are dominated by negative and toxic personalities, with excessive whinging and manipulative infighting stifling growth, innovation and results. The following ideas will assist you on your journey for creating a great culture and removing those stubborn roadblocks.
1/ Focus your energy on the right people. Positive, optimistic people will not only inspire you but also celebrate your successes and encourage you to do more. Don’t surround yourself with negative and miserable people, as they will only bring you down to their level. Sure, always support and empathise with a person who is having a bad day but be wary of persistently pessimistic people who are energy vampires. The best way to do this is call your negative people on their behaviour and don’t indulge them. Alternatively, simply get rid of them … set your miserable people free!
2/ Make a decision today that you are no longer going to whinge and you will no longer allow other people to do it to you! We have another saying at Proteus, which is “if you are not prepared to be a part of the solution then you forfeit your right to complain”. This is one of the best strategies for a great culture, because you and your people start offering ideas, plans and solutions each time a problem comes up. As opposed to the toxic dump delivered by negative individuals or an environment where people want you to fix everything, which will only create a culture of dependency – something you must avoid!
3/ Celebrate your successes and your people. Rather than being frustrated by the diversity of your staff, celebrate and utilise their differences and support and encourage their uniqueness. Have you heard that successful teams have a party and unsuccessful teams have more meetings! So always remember to celebrate.
The above suggestions are quite simple, however not always easy to implement, because these ideas may require you to change your behaviour. So take a moment to stop, reflect and respond more strategically to achieve your desired results.