Zig Ziglar jokes about the sort of person who brightens a room by leaving it.
You know the type: Always negative. Eager to chip away at the ideas of others. Tending to cloak their cynicism under a cover of sophistication but seldom willing to present their own proposals.
I'm not talking about The Office Curmudgeon, the crusty character who doesn't fall for Management by Best Seller and who cuts through the bull. The Curmudgeon is tough but caring and a large part of his or her gruffness stems from a deep concern for the well-being of others and for the team.
You know the type: Always negative. Eager to chip away at the ideas of others. Tending to cloak their cynicism under a cover of sophistication but seldom willing to present their own proposals.
I'm not talking about The Office Curmudgeon, the crusty character who doesn't fall for Management by Best Seller and who cuts through the bull. The Curmudgeon is tough but caring and a large part of his or her gruffness stems from a deep concern for the well-being of others and for the team.
There are many organizations and teams that would suffer greatly if the Curmudgeon walked out the door.
The Negative Person is different. This bitter person's sole interest appears to be raising self-image by tearing down others. Organizations and teams improve when these people walk out the door.
What is baffling is how long it takes some managers to catch on to that fact and then to take appropriate action. I sometimes ask managers to name the negative people in their departments or divisions. They often rattle off a list of names.
The next question is obvious and it does not necessarily reflect the caliber of the manager:
Why are the negative people still here?
No comments:
Post a Comment