Relationships, by their nature, require constant and consistent tending. The quality of the care you put into these relationships translates into either a negative or positive experience. That is, the other person perceives every one of your interactions as good or bad. If you choose to behave poorly during an interaction, that experience will be considered negative; conversely, if you conduct yourself well, the other person will considered the experience as positive. Connectivity (connection with others) has a cumulative effect: The more your individual behaviour is seen as negative, the less likely you will be at developing a connection with that person. In order to make a connection with another person you must increase the positive experiences by improving your leader behaviour.
Effects of Negative Behaviour
Over time, negative experiences erode a leader’s influence. This is particularly true for leaders who give plenty of lip service to forging effective relationships but do nothing to advance that cause. These leaders ignore or do not seek feedback. They do not listen to others or share information with them. They micro-manage their staff, allow their emotions to control them, take accomplishments for granted, and offer more criticism than aid and resources. Negative behaviour breeds cynicism, distrust, and resistance to change, and worse, they can bring productivity to a screeching halt. Negative behaviour breeds ineffective leadership, and in health care, negative behaviour has devastating effects on patient care and quality outcomes.
One survey of employees who left their job indicated that 25 percent quit because of “ineffective leadership” and 22 percent resigned as a result of “poor relations” with a manager. While some percentage of turnover is healthy for the organization, to replace the inevitable bad hires, we cannot dismiss the relevance of the findings from attrition studies that claim that failed connections are the primary reason people leave their jobs.
Advantages of Positive Connections
Positive behaviours strengthen influence. The kind of connection made through positive interaction improves performance, boosts morale, quality, and productivity, promotes trust and accountability, and creates a culture in which work is meaningful and its performers are valued. Positive Presence is the skill that drives positive behaviour.
In this environment, the leaders are self-aware and serve as role models of responsible, professional behaviour. Their employees, in turn, are highly collaborative; they understand what the organization is trying to achieve and how their behaviour and performance contribute to that bigger picture. And, trust and accountability are not just expected, they become the norm.
Catherine is the President and CEO of CORPORATE HARMONY, providing virtual solutions for leadership development and organizational culture change. Her leadership and coaching experience as a Project Manager in an ever-changing, fast moving technological organization with unrelenting demands drove her to the realization that a positive mindset and strength-building behaviors are essential for today’s complex and chaotic organizational systems. CORPORATE HARMONY’s virtual platform of programs, coaching and performance measurement, is an innovative online technology of tested proprietary content. The world-class content of CORPORATE HARMONY’s Positive Presence Program develops the skill of ‘Positive Presence’ and the necessary ‘Positive Presence Behaviour Competencies’ for maintaining a positive and energized mindset and increased performance in today’s complex work environment, and leading to a culture of collaboration and connection. Catherine’s vision for Corporate Harmony is to bring the skill of “Positive Presence” to the corporate world as it becomes more complex, ambiguous and chaotic. Catherine is uniquely positioned to impact organizations’ productivity and long term success, with her powerful vision of eliminating bad stress from every workplace around the globe, bringing purpose into the people equation to promote healthy, productive and meaningful work cultures and turn the tide on the neglect of mental health on a global scale. Catherine is author of the book: “CORPORATE HARMONY – The Performance Link for Today’s Modern Organization” Catherine can be reached at: Catherine.Osborne@corporateharmony.ca or go to ‘contact us’ on our website www.corporateharmony.ca. Catherine is available for consultation, and can be reached by 519-695-3407.