The views expressed by the business participants are their own.
In 20 years, I met the most amazing salesman: If a potential buyer liked cigars and cognac, he would show up wearing cowboy boots and drink and smoke – whatever it took to get the order. And he usually did.
However, those behaviors often spilled over into the workplace. He was very good at conniving to get what he needed out of people we didn’t know when he was being genuine or just trying to achieve his goals. Of course, being a chameleon at work can be good if their goals are aligned with those of the company. On the other hand, it can also spread poison.
While happy employees make happy companies, working in toxic environments can cause employees mental and physical harm. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, decreased productivity due to depression and anxiety at work costs the global economy $1 trillion and Americans $192.3 billion in lost wages annually.
While the greatest danger comes from toxic leadership, even one toxic person on a team can spread to others and, ultimately, the entire company. Meanwhile, the time and effort required for everyone affected to come forward and deal with it can be a huge task. Instead, with a little planning and preventative measures, leaders can eliminate toxic behaviors and keep workplaces healthy.
Related: 4 Little Signs Your Company Culture Is Becoming Toxic
What makes a toxic workplace?
Toxic behavior can take many forms – bullying, manipulation, intimidation, sarcasm or threats; accusing group members of personal shortcomings, belittling them or arguing with them. The most toxic environments are often led by insecure people who put their own interests at the expense of the well-being of others. Toxic leaders create subordinates who reflect that unhealthy relationship on their people, and that toxicity can spread to all departments.
Such toxic situations damage employee motivation and satisfaction, perpetuate poor communication and a lack of commitment that harms productivity. In a 2023 study by Mental Health America, nearly 8 out of 10 workers feel stress at work due to toxic behavior affects their mental health. The mental and physical damage of toxic workplaces, such as headaches, high blood pressure, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, all hinder performance. Worst of all, good people within the toxic category can be driven to quit in order to escape.
Related: Who’s Responsible for a Toxic Workplace? If You Do Any Of These 3 Things, Look In The Mirror.
Keep work areas safe
Leaders can prevent problems from becoming toxic by creating a safe environment where everyone can be their best. This includes clarifying roles and responsibilities, setting realistic expectations and allowing and encouraging people to think freely, make mistakes and improve.
Leaders must also understand when experiences outside the workplace affect our ability to perform. Recently, a family member dealing with personal issues has found herself struggling to meet the responsibilities of this job. In a toxic situation, their boss may have snapped, spreading the poison and creating another toxic employee. Instead, their boss chose to be patient and gave them a place to heal, and they returned to work gratefully.
Yes, despite our best efforts, toxic behavior can infiltrate even the safest environment. So, create an action plan to get to the source and crack it. Here are three ways to start:
1. Ask questions
When faced with potentially toxic situations, ask: Did people exhibit toxic behavior when we hired them or did they develop while they were part of our team? If the first, how can we review our hiring process to be more accountable? If the latter, where do they struggle: with colleagues or customers; peers or supervisors; and how can we help them?
Learn to assess communication style for signs of self-centeredness and insecurity. Do they speak to learn, clarify and reach a decision, or to understand? Do they listen, process feedback and make improvements, or make excuses, deny and dismiss? Were they respectful? Interrupting or dominating the conversation can be red flags of toxicity.
2. Take out that last 10%
Leaders can only address toxic behaviors once they are aware of them, but there is a lot going on in the company that leaders cannot see. Those under-the-radar behaviors that go unchecked for long periods of time often cause more damage. If the environment looks good on the outside, people may feel uncomfortable bringing up problems that might disrupt that.
Although most employees cannot easily start a conversation about 80% or 90% of the problems, in our company, we aim to make them feel safe enough to give the last 10% – those stressful conflicts that may include low-level toxic behavior that goes unnoticed. To some extent, this requires a persistent pessimism about what may lie beneath. However, constantly striving to expose those concerns better ensures our ability to support a healthy environment.
3. Fix what can be fixed, eliminate what can’t be fixed
Not all toxic behavior indicates a bad apple. Even top donors may show occasional toxicity and it’s still worth the effort to try and reach out. More information about roles, responsibilities, company goals or culture may be all they need to clear up any confusion.
Have conversations and make plans for improvement. Use examples they can understand and explain what needs to be changed in a way that will allow them to engage in a productive discussion. For repeat offenders who cannot recognize their behavior as toxic, consider the importance of removing them before their toxicity spreads.
Related: 5 Types of Toxic Employees and How to Deal With Them
Build a network of industry champions
In order for people to feel safe enough to talk about toxic behavior, leaders need a network of managers to support those relationships. This requires self-awareness as the example we set and our ability to accept feedback and reflect. I consider my actions through the lens of others and, when in doubt, I ask. Our withdrawal review policy allows me to go directly to team members who report to my direct reports, not to step on toes but to gain insight. In toxic workplaces, such a policy may cause insecurity and discomfort, but through ongoing efforts to build mutual respect and a safe environment for workplace champions, we set the stage for healthy team change and long-term organizational success.
Source link
