Good Words: Best Team
Whether you’re aware of it or not, your mood at work can affect others around you, especially if you work in a collaborative environment.
Sources from Harvard Business Review find that saying nice things to your co-workers can have a big impact on their work and how they feel.
Research has shown that people have a tendency to dwell on thoughts that cause worry or distress. Some of it may be evolutionary (the brain’s way of making you pay attention to that that terrible thing over there). However, in more modern times, staying stuck on concerns that aren’t life threatening can erode our quality of life and work.
The good news is that reframing your mindset can sometimes change your state of mind and other people’s too. When focusing on yourself, that might happen by writing out your frustrations, looking at them objectively without letting yourself spiral, and then imagining how you’d handle it as your most-capable self. When trying to improve the days of your co-workers, you might pay them a thoughtful compliment that helps showcase why they are valuable.
After all, work is just as much about getting along with people as it is about getting your work done. The Harvard Business Review article points to research showing that “stories we hear from others that highlight our unique contributions can help us find purpose in our relationships with our colleagues and our work.”
The article’s authors, Jane E. Dutton and Julia Lee, offer four suggestions for how to “cultivate positive self-meaning” among your colleagues: create positive first impressions, communicate a teammate’s value, describe them positively when they’re undermined, and send off colleagues on a high note.
The advice isn’t ground-breaking, but it’s a much-needed antidote to all the negative workplace advice that seems to be everywhere these days.
Saying a few kind words to a colleague seems like a small thing, but it can make a big difference. That difference can result in a stronger team that benefits from your standout leadership skills, a winning combo for everyone involved.
So, when are you going to start?
