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Anger is a Choice -
Training yourself to control your emotions is no easy task, especially if someone has gone out of their way to make you angry. Some polls indicate that more than 21% of us report we feel angry at work, and I believe that number has to be higher. We all know that anger at work left unresolved can lead to serious issues. We also all know that our emotions are our own and we and we alone control how we react to a given situation.
In a time where we are all concerned about building an external network on LinkedIn or another social networking tool, we have forgotten about an internal expert network. Each of us would like to believe we are the perfect employee that can do it all, but we all know others within our organizations that can program, reformat the database, or set up a spreadsheet in a quarter of the time it takes us to do it.
Ever have a run in with a co-worker that you thought was resolved only to get the cold shoulder at some point? Despite the apparent resolution, some people find it had to move past the issue. Bad feelings and grudges can grow and fester until the situation becomes intolerable, preventing the two of you from being able to work effectively together. The situation will not resolve itself until you decide to approach your co-worker and determine what is still unresolved.
The sooner you realize as leader or manager that if your employees are successful then you and the company are successful as well. I don’t know who said it but, “the success of the individual is inherent in the success of the team,” has always been one of my favorites
Do you listen to yourself when talking to another co-worker? Are you formal and stiff? Do you avoid any pleasantries and jump right to the reason for your conversation? If you do (and you know who you are), you are sending signals that you are standoffish, causing others to avoid working with you or cooperating.
As a manager/leader you MUST be a cheerleader and a coach while providing the direction, authority and support your employee’s desire. I think an overlooked area of management is dealing with employee complaints. We all know we come to work to earn a living, but I think the old 80/20 rule applies, with the 20% including an employee’s comfort level in approaching you regarding a complaint, be it personal or professional.
