Having heard complaints about negative employees for years, I was surprised by the results of our last survey which didn't show "negative employees" as the pet peeve of HR and employers. Upon reflection, however, that makes perfect sense. There are few if any employees who are negative all of the time. For that matter, human beings are so complex that psychologists study patterns of behavior, not just incidents of particular behavior. In fact, the psychological definition of "attitude" is a "pattern of behavior."
The Positive Contrarian: Of course, it makes it easier if we could pigeonhole or label employees, and although we can and do, we shouldn't. Take me for example. I am what I call a "positive contrarian." Tell you a true story. (Would I like to you?) In the early 70's I was almost always at loggerheads with the Administrative Executive Vice President. At twenty-something, I knew everything, and at fifty-something, he knew nothing. Well of course I didn't know everything, and he knew next to nothing.
He called me into his office one day and started his monologue with, "Winning, you're the most negative person I've ever met!" And I replied, "I am not negative. I'm just very positive about the things I don't like."
Two days later I had been transferred from L.A. to San Francisco. I never got a chance to thank him. If he has since learned to read and has followed these editorials, John, thank you.
Okay, label me a "wise ass." Stress the "wise."
Troglodytes: A troglodyte is a person who is reclusive, and as a cave man, brutish in appearance and demeanor. Forgetting the brutishness, have you run into any recluses at work? I sure have. These are people who, whenever you really need them, disappear. I don't know how they do it, but they seem to know when work is coming their way. It's like trying to find a plumber.
Luddites: The term, "Luddite," refers to a group of British workers who, between 1811 and 1816 rioted and destroyed new laborsaving equipment thinking (rightfully so) that such equipment would diminish employment. The Luddites preceded a group of saboteurs during the Industrial Revolution. The word "sabotage" comes from the Old French for wooden shoe, "sabot," and saboteurs were those that threw such shoes into machinery to stop the Revolution.
During any revolution, some group gets hurt. The Industrial Revolution, the automation revolution of the Twentieth Century, and the computer revolution have caused some people to lose their jobs. Those who adapt rather than revolt survive. The man today who still needs a secretary simply won't make it in today's world. Those who are unwilling to learn the basics of computing and necessary software cannot make it. Remember, one generation's manual labor is today's computerized mundane task. (Yes, I know there are those jobs that are still manual labor, but when there are automatic cable laying machines or bathroom cleaners -- and there will be - those jobs will disappear.)
Isn't "Luddite" and "troglodyte" just another form of labeling? Well, yes and no. The difference is that these two terms address patterns of behavior and are not so global as calling someone "negative." I've actually met one person who, as far as I know, was always negative, and I've also met one who was always positive, someone I referred to (labeled) "The Bubbler." I've got to tell you that the Bubbler got on my nerves faster than the negative one but, after all is said, I'd prefer working with normal day-to-day neurotics.
September 11 was a behavioral marker. The behaviors of employees were almost as diverse as the numbers of employees, perhaps more disparate the farther away from New York and Washington you got. There were the volunteers, the consolers, the "collectors" as in "let's take up a collection," the flag wavers, the quiet ones, the decisive ones, some who took the event personally, and some who were dispassionate; and, yes, even those who used the occasion to avoid work. These are the same employees that you work with on a daily basis now. They haven't really changed. They may have shown truer colors on September 11, but it's still them.
Negative Sells: We should all be able to identify with the negative employee. Negative sells. Newspapers put the very few positive items on page 34 (like "Ma and Pa Kettle Celebrate 75th Anniversary"). I went through today's paper, and found no more than four "cheerful" blurbs. No, we live in a "car crash world." We pass them on highways and can't help but look. We go to auto races, not to see who's going to win, but in the hope of a nonfatal, but spectacular wreck. Talk radio relies on the negative. TV news is full of it. Recessions, economies collapsing, wars, price increases, wage decreases, down markets, etc. etc. etc.
"Negative" is relative. So if you can label someone as negative, it must be worse than your outlook and behavior. Even our language is negative. Get out your thesauruses. Look up "positive" and "negative." There are eight synonyms for positive - in a "sunny" sense. There are 54 synonyms for negative which can be taken in a behavior sense.
If you have an employee who frequently uses the terms "always" and "never," you might have a case for determining attitude. Still, resist labeling. That doesn't mean that counseling shouldn't take place if an employee is usually mopey, adverse, apathetic, pathetic, contradictory, uncooperative, lazy, cynical, complaining, or downright combative. (Remember, "loyal opposition" is an oxymoron.) Everybody has a bad day. When an employee has 100 of them in a year, you are going to have 150. It's time consuming and does nothing for your own well being. The above adjectives can be found on any number of performance appraisals. When you label, you are taking the easy road, and you could easily discount a potentially valuable employee.
Changes in Behavior: The thing to watch for is a change in behavior. I've always been concerned when a generally "good" employee becomes mopey or even morbid. I'm rarely concerned about the generally "bad" employee becoming positive. In fact, maybe he's gotten a new job and will be out of my hair (fat chance).
All Rights Reserved. Copyright 2002. E. A. Winning Associates, Inc.