Last week, I prepped a Michigan business radio interview (that never happened because of time restraints) about how to deal with a bad boss. This topic is a perennial favorite on my site. No matter how often I write about how to deal with a bad boss, readers want to know more. Their favorite complaint and the topic they are most likely to post about on my site is also bad bosses.
Address Your Sea of Negativity
I look at a bad boss as a particularly powerful factor in the sea of negativity that pervades some workplaces. Not mine, thank goodness, but many of yours... Once employee negativity takes hold in your workplace, it is incredibly difficult to dislodge. So, the key to taking care of negative factors such as bad bosses, difficult coworkers, bullies, gossip, and a lack of communication and direction, is to never allow them to get started in the first place.
Five Causes of Employee Negativity
A couple of years ago, Towers Perrin (now Towers Watson) and researchers Gang & Gang interviewed employees and discovered the five main causes of employee negativity. A number of these are factors that come up repeatedly when readers talk about why their bosses are bad. Nip these in the bud to discourage a negative workplace:
- An excessive workload;
- Concerns about management's ability to lead the company forward successfully;
- Anxiety about the future, particular longer-term job, income and retirement security;
- Lack of challenge in their work, with boredom intensifying existing frustration about workload; and
- Insufficient recognition for the level of contribution and effort provided, and concerns that pay isn't commensurate with performance.
Workplace Negativity Poll
What causes negativity in your workplace? Comment and vote in the poll.
What Is the Primary Cause of Negativity in Your Work Place? (Choose Only One)- Lack of direction from management.
- Constant change that is not well-communicated.
- Poor communication overall.
- An excessive workload.
- Lack of challenge, boredom.
- Insufficient recognition for the level of contribution and effort provided.
- Anxiety about the future: job security, retirement income.
- Other. Please respond in “comments” below.
- View Results
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Great post. The bullet list of factors leading to a negative workplace make for good thinking material.
Another matter that contributes to a negative workplace is reluctance to speak up. Managing up, when done in a respectful and factual manner, is a powerful way for employees and managers to positively influence their environment. If it doesn’t work, we can always vote with our feet, confident in the knowledge that we did our part to create change.
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