John T Mason

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Get Rid Of Misunderstanding Once And For All

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Image courtesy of Pixabay
Image courtesy of Pixabay

As a CIO, I have attended more that my fair share of product demonstrations from well meaning vendors, trying to make me see the value of their product or service, and hopefully buy in. In many cases, the product or service message is fairly clear and informative, and I can make a good decision based on what I hear. But every so often, there is that presentation that goes south, right out of the gate, and I can’t for the life of me understand what they are selling. You’ve likely been there too, whether at work, in the community, or even in your own family. Maybe it’s not a product. Perhaps it’s an idea, or a point of view.

A few years ago I had a situation much like this. I walked into a conference room, met the sales team, and sat down to be impressed by whatever it was they were selling. However, the sales person didn’t take the time to set up the goal of the presentation, or even give some background on what we would be seeing. He immediately jumped into a product features demonstration, and was going so fast, I couldn’t  keep up.

It was obvious he was nervous, and it might have been the nerves that pushed him ahead at breakneck speed. However, only 10 minutes into the presentation, I was lost, and just couldn’t see the value of the product, or what problem it would solve for us. I tried asking some clarifying questions, and even tried to prompt him to focus on some of the issues I was trying to solve. But, he got visibly frustrated and this lead to him being even more disjointed. Finally, I had to stop the meeting and ask him to reschedule some time for us to meet when they could present around a set of needs that we would identify. To say the least, the sales person was flustered since he felt he had given us exactly what we wanted.

On the other hand, perhaps you’ve been the person in the unfortunate position of trying to sell an idea to an audience, and for some reason, what you are saying just isn’t resonating. You begin to sweat, your pace goes up with every question, glance or facial expression from the audience, and you can just feel the life of the presentation draining away. Then, you begin to tell yourself that they just don’t “get it”, and it must be their lack of understanding or intelligence. “It’s so simple. Why can’t they see what you see?” Their lack of ability to hear your message, or buy in to your idea just makes you more frustrated. Don’t let the curse of knowledge make you look stupid!

If you find yourself in this situation, what can you do?

  1. Slow down and take the time to educate – If you are in the middle of a presentation, there’s nothing wrong with stopping your message and asking if further explanation might be needed. The worst thing you can do is just drive on, assuming they will “get it” eventually. If this is a longer set of discussions over a period of time, ask for a reset with the people you are trying to influence. What you find out from that reset might be all you need to adjust your message.
  2. Review your message and make sure it’s telling the right story – It’s easy to be so knowledgeable on a topic that you lose sight of the difficulty you might have had learning about it early on. You can’t expect that people will absorb information that might have taken you years to master. Ask someone not involved if they can understand the message, presentation or concept. If it’s not clear to them, it’s likely not clear to many other people as well.
  3. Check you attitude – Have you let your frustration cloud your attitude? Could you be viewing the audience as incompetent or inept? If you’ve lost (or don’t have) respect for those you are trying to influence, you can quickly come across as arrogant or aloof, and this will impact the audience response. First and foremost, your job is to inform and educate. Simon Sinek, a best selling author, has a great presentation that says “If you don’t understand people, you don’t understand business“. All business is ultimately about people, and you have to try and understand others before you can expect them to understand you.
  4. Find an honest critic – If you really want to know how you come across, and if what you are saying could be the problem, you have to have an honest critic who will tell you the truth. You don’t need someone to just tell you what you want to hear, you need someone who will tell you what you NEED to hear.
  5. Reevaluate yourself to see if you are the problem – One of my favorite quotes is by General Bruce Clarke, one of the key leaders during the first Gulf War in 1991. He cautions that before you try and blame others, you need to start with yourself. It just might be you! His quote was “When things go wrong in your command, start searching for the reason in increasingly large circles around your own two feet.” If you find yourself in this situation on multiple occasions, it might be time to start looking close to home first.
Don't let the Curse of Knowledge make you look stupid. Click To Tweet

To influence, you have to be able to sell. To be able to sell, you have to be able to communicate. Your message needs to be clear, and has to be adapted to the audience. If you aren’t connecting, make sure it’s not you. More than likely it is!

Have you ever found yourself feeling like people just don’t get it? How did you regroup and get the message across?

Ban The Newsletter: 4 Better Ways To Engage Your Team

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Image courtesy of Gratisography
Image courtesy of Gratisography

If you want to be an effective leader to a new generation of workers, you had better become Social Media savvy, and quickly. The old forms of communication will still work for some but, for the folks just coming out of college, you are going to have to wield a new set of tools. Knowing how Social Media has shaped expectations, and the speed of communication will be key. And it starts with understanding how prevalent these tools really are.

In the world of social media, Twitter and Facebook are King in the United States. With 320 million people in the United States, over 58% of them are on Facebook, and approximately 28% are on Twitter. Worldwide, Facebook is also the leader with over 1.6 Billion (yes, that’s a ‘B’) monthly active users. That’s 22% of the entire world population!

There are other, less well known apps in use across the world that also dominate over Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram such as WhatsApp (900 million users) and Weibo (600 million users). They’re not quite as common in our culture today, but as you can see, hugely popular across the globe.

Likely, the fact that you’re reading this blog increases the chances that you participate in Social Media in some form or fashion. According to a Pew Research Center study, 74% of all internet connected adults use some form of Social Media in differing degrees. You are likely reading this on LinkedIn, or direct from my Blog site. But no matter how you got here, you more than likely have a Facebook page, and actively look at it weekly.

To be sure, all of this ‘screen time’ is impacting the way people think and act. And not all of it’s good. Just google ‘social media horror stories’ and you’ll have nearly 3 million things to read about how inappropriate, or inadvertent posts have impacted peoples lives and their work. From angry ex-employees to company insensitivity, it seems there’s no end to the negatives that can come from Social Media.

But, Social Media has just as many great stories that made things possible that just couldn’t have happened in the past. Who can forget the awareness and money raised for ALS, or the way social media was used to help reconnect families after the major earthquake in Japan. These things just wouldn’t have been possible before the advent of Social Media, especially not at the speeds they happen today.

So what? What does all of this have to do with leadership you might be asking? Let me explain.

As the Baby Boomer generation starts to retire at a rapid pace now (there are over 10,000 boomers retiring every day), the Millennials have taken over as the largest workforce population. With over 75 million workers ranging in age from 18-34, they are now the predominant worker, and thus have new expectations.

Just like us in the late Boomer/Generation X generation, they bristle under the expectations that things should continue as they always have been. How many of us would prefer that things were still done on a typewriter or love the smell of cigarette smoke from the office next to you? Nobody likes change, but even more, nobody likes to be told to keep things the same either.

We can’t expect that younger workers will continue to accept things to stay the same as well. Just 10 short years ago, the Baby Boomer generation still outnumbered the rest of the workforce, and the way they worked, and the expectations they had for their leaders was pretty well established. But that’s officially over.

Today’s younger generation has a much higher expectation for information, transparency, and mobility. They are used to constant information flow and expect that information to come in smaller bites. The days of reading a monthly newsletter, with all it’s articles and facts just isn’t something they will patiently read. They need information, short, to the point and constant.

Your job as a leader is varied, but one of the most important things you can do is to find the right team and then motivate them to great things. And one of the greatest expectations they have for you is that you keep them informed.

So how does this affect you as a leader? What lessons can be learned from Social Media that will help you keep the workforce engaged and active as valuable team members? Here are a few things you should consider.

  • Keep it short – Tweets are limited to 140 characters (at least for now). When I first came across Twitter as it was becoming popular, I couldn’t, for the life of me, understand how anyone would want to read something 140 characters long. But I found out that 140 digits was enough to get a small piece of information across, and if it wasn’t, a link to the rest of the information was an easy fix. You need to keep your communications to the team the same way. Give them the basics, and allow them ways to read more if they’re interested, or when they have time. Don’t assume they want to, or have time to, read the 5 paragraph update you provided.
  • Make communications enticing – In today’s world, a good title is worth gold. For example, with over 1 million people posting articles on LinkedIn regularly, how can your article stand out from the sea of other posts? It all has to do with how well you attract the reader. The same thing goes for your communications. Sending out an email with a subject line of ‘Status Update’ is much less likely to get them to actually read it than a more descriptive title like “3 Things You Need to Know Before Friday’. Which one are you more likely to read? Exactly….
  • Keep the information flowing – The days of the monthly newsletter are over. Before the days of Social Media, sending out a newsletter to your employees or customers was a smart move. They got new information, and you had a platform for sending the communication that was more likely to be read than a letter. But, newsletters are not resonating anymore. Blog posts, with links driven by tweets and other Social Media tools are much more likely to get read, and read by the right people. Don’t wait for the monthly, or even weekly newsletter cycle. Start sending relevant information as soon as it happens. You’re team will thank you!
  • Be transparent – If you haven’t noticed lately, there seems to be a real distrust of ‘insiders’ in the country. Much of that distrust is coming from the younger generations who have found our political system to be full of cronyism and division. By default, many now see the same thing of corporate america. They view those in the most senior leadership roles as being opaque and out for themselves. Being transparent means being forthcoming with the good and the bad, and even being willing to share your own mistakes and faults. It’s uncomfortable, but necessary if you want to reach your younger audience.

As we continue to see a reduction in our older workforce, and folks entering the workforce have new expectations, it’s up to you as a leader to engage and keep them informed. If you think that you can do things like they’ve always been done, you are doomed to see high turnover and increased employee dissatisfaction.

Take a lesson from Social Media, and communicate to your team in ways that resonate with them. And if you don’t use, or understand, Social Media, get engaged. You’ll be amazed at the things you’ll learn.

What ways have you used Social Medial to communicate with your teams?

5 Super Easy Ways To Stop Going It Alone

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Image courtesy of Gratisography
Image courtesy of Gratisography

Undoubtedly, one of the most difficult leadership jobs has to be leading a group of volunteers. It seems like it should be easy. Everyone volunteered because they are passionate about the organization, the mission or the cause being worked on. Surely they’re committed to whatever level of work it takes to support the organization. But, the reality is, leading volunteers can be taxing physically, mentally and emotionally. While the volunteers are passionate about the cause, they inevitably hit a wall where their passion succumbs to the daily pressures they face outside the organization they want to support. When the reality of a “paying job’, family or other responsibilities overtakes their passion, they start to step back, fail to show up, or do less than their best work. In some ways, this is as detrimental to the organization as if they hadn’t shown up in the first place.

But, leading in the work place is much easier, isn’t it? After all, people are paid to be there, and they don’t even have to be passionate about the mission or goals of the organization. They just need to show up and do what’s asked. Right? Wrong….

Just because someone is paid to do a job, we all know that this isn’t a guarantee that they will show up with their best efforts every day, or that they will go above and beyond the job to take care of customers or team members. And even if you are their peer, there’s no guarantee that the other team members will really give it their all to help you out and make sure you’re successful. The reality is, leading up and down the organization is much easier than leading across, amongst your peers.

Patrick Lencioni talks about the importance of making sure your peers are successful in his book “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.” In fact, he talks about this group of people as your ‘number one team.’ He says that this group of people, your peers, is so important, that not taking care of each other can be more detrimental to the organization than not taking care of the team you lead. The theory is, if every leader worries more about themselves than they do the overall organization (e.g. my department results are the most important thing I need to focus on), it is a forgone conclusion that decision-making will suffer, and the organization as a whole will suffer right along with it.

leading up and down the organization is much easier than leading across Click To Tweet

But, no matter how hard we try, getting everyone on a team to agree to this, and focus on each other as ‘Team #1’ continues to be an elusive idea. No doubt you’ve experienced this behavior first hand with your peers before. Let’s look at a fictional (or is it?) scenario.

A high-performing group of peers gathers to discuss ideas on how to solve a significant issue in the organization. It’s a good team, where folks feel the right to speak up, disagree (without being disagreeable) and share their opinions and ideas. Collectively, you take on the role of driving the conversation and even tell the group you are willing to take notes and send them out when some final decisions are made. The meeting seems to go great, and everyone seems on board for implementing the new ideas. In fact, they are downright fired up to see some of the changes implemented.

A couple of days later, you send out an email with a summary of the discussions and a list of the ideas that everyone agreed to. At the end of the note you ask each person to send a note back to you telling you what task they are willing to take on. It’s then that you feel like you can hear crickets chirping. No response, or the inevitable “I’d love to….but I am really busy right now” response. It’s then when you realize that leading peers is the hardest of all leadership roles.

You shouldn’t be too surprised with the response though. It’s not uncommon, and is grounded in a psychological phenomenon called the ‘Bystander Effect’, or the ‘Genovese Syndrome.’ This syndrome was first identified in the 1960s after the murder of a young lady named Kitty Genovese in Queens, New York. Coming home from work one evening in 1964, Kitty was attacked outside an apartment complex multiple times by the same man. During the hour that it took for him to assault her, no less than 38 people physically witnessed the attack, yet did nothing to intervene or help out. She ultimately died in the arms of a stranger who finally took the time to check on her, but nearly an hour after the attack started.

Why in the world, knowing someone was in danger, would that many people fail to act to help her? That’s what psychologists wanted to know, so they set out to find out the cause behind the inaction. What they discovered was sobering. When questioned why they hadn’t acted, some of the responses from the neighbors were:

  • “I didn’t want to get involved.”
  • “Others were watching the attack too. Surely they were going to call the police.”
  • “I didn’t want to get involved in a lover’s quarrel.”
  • “It was none of my business.”

and most disturbing…

  • “I was tired.”

Or consider this scenario.

You are at home one Friday night, watching a movie and enjoying time with the family. Suddenly, the power goes out and you’re left in the dark. Luckily, the phone is still working, so you get your flashlight and look up the number to the power company so you can call them. Or do you? Is there really any reason to call? After all, everyone else in the neighborhood is affected too, and surely your neighbor has already called. No need to call them and add to the number of calls coming in.

While the research conducted by psychologists was primarily focused on the actions of people during emergencies, they discovered that people tended to respond more quickly based on several factors, with one seeming to weigh more heavily than others. During the studies, response to emergencies was correlated to the degree of responsibility the person felt when witnessing the emergency. And that degree of responsibility was a factor of three questions that the person played out in their minds.

  1. Was this person deserving of help?
  2. The competence of the person witnessing the emergency.
  3. The relationship between the witness and the person in duress.

Essentially, the more the witness liked the person, the more they felt capable of helping, and whether or not they knew the person had a direct impact on their response.

There are lessons for us as leaders when we’re working with our peers from the Bystander Effect. If you are experiencing ‘crickets’ when you ask for help in solving problems, there are lessons from the incident in 1964 that can help you gain more support, and ultimately make the organization better for it. What are some of the things you need to be doing BEFORE you need help from your team?

  1. Act in the best interest of others – As you look at the findings of the psychologists after the death of Kitty Genovese, one of the key things they noticed was how people reacted to the person being assaulted. The question that the observer started with was “is this person deserving of my help?” The only way they would know that would be either from observation (is the person needing help obviously overwhelmed or vulnerable) or personal knowledge of your behaviors (how do they treat others?). The best way to be sure they see you as deserving is to see you treating others the same way. If you tend to worry about yourself, your reputation, and your own needs first and foremost, people will see it. Especially your peers. Before the time comes you need their help, be sure you are giving it to them when they needed it.
  2. Help them understand your role – Too many times, people tend to focus so much on their role in the organization that they don’t take time to learn what others (especially their peers) do. The old adage of ‘seek first to understand’ is key here. You need to be interested in your peer’s role, their responsibilities and their struggles if you want them to ever learn about yours. Once you have that trust, bring them into your world and help them know more about what you do. This ends up increasing the competency of both of you, and gives you a better understanding of where this person might be able to help you when you need it. You should ask people to help with things you know they can do to avoid the competence avoidance reaction.
  3. Develop REAL relationships – Nothing is more frustrating than to look at your peers and realize they know nothing about you outside the work world. One of the most powerful ties that human beings can develop is a shared struggle or achievement. When you go through something challenging together, you really get to know the people beside you. But, it’s better to develop that relationship before something challenges the two of you. The more you know, the more likely they are to help you, and the more likely you are to help them. Take the time to get to know them as a person, not just as a co-worker.

Once you’ve mastered the relationships with your number one team, how can you call on them to help you when you need it and avoid the Bystander Effect? How can you get them to jump in and help you as one of the team, looking out for the good of the whole? While there’s no silver bullet for every situation, I think there are a few things you can do to increase the odds that you won’t be left holding the bag when you need the help of everyone.

  1. Work together to find a solution – When you need the help of your peers to get something done together, remember it’s not just your problem. Once you ask them for help, it’s become their problem as well. In some ways, you are actually letting the monkey jump to their back, so you need to work with them to figure out how to make the monkey go away. Get their ideas, use their feedback, and above all else, value their input, even if it isn’t what you had in mind.
  2. Clearly define the deliverables – I have been in many meetings with my peers where a problem was debated, and a set of solutions was actually agreed to. Everyone could look around the table and agree that the solution had been decided. But, the Bystander Effect quickly takes over once the solution is agreed to. People suddenly have meetings to attend, issues to resolve and other things more important, and quickly want to disperse. Actually, people do this so they can avoid the inevitable decision on who is going to do what. So, before there is any pause in the solution, clearly define what deliverables need to be created. This gets people that much closer to ownership of the problem with you.
  3. Ask for specific help – Once you’ve defined the deliverables, you need to ask people to take specific items while you have their attention. Undoubtedly, you are hoping that everyone will pitch in from the goodness of their heart (and for the team), but remember what we learned. There is always an assumption that ‘someone else’ is going to step up and take care of things. Besides, surely someone else is better skilled in the particular need that you have. Sorry, people aren’t typically going to take on additional work without someone asking them directly. Don’t be shy….ask for their commitment.
  4. Put it in writing – Here is where things tend to fall apart the quickest. Even if you are able to get people to sign up and agree to help you, they can quickly lose sight of their commitment if they don’t see it in writing. One of the most famous authors on this subject is Robert Cialdini, the author of the seminal book ‘Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion’ says that once someone puts their name in writing on something, they feel an obligation to fulfill what they committed to. In other words, people want to be congruent with their words and actions, and the act of putting it in writing increases your odds that they will follow through.
  5. Follow up to conclusion – Even if everything else has gone well so far, it becomes far too easy for people to fall back on old habits if you don’t remind them of their role. Just like volunteers, people get busy in their own responsibilities and will forget that they committed to do something to help the team. Holding them accountable by regular reminders will help keep this commitment front and center of their attention and move them along to completion.

If you are finding yourself frustrated with your peers, seeing them back away from responsibility to the rest of the team, it doesn’t have to mean everything will fall on you. Just remember that the reaction is normal, and to overcome it, you need to get them beyond the Bystander Syndrome. Help them see the benefit and commitment to the rest of the team, and model your behavior so when the time comes for them to step up, they’ll know who ‘Team #1’ is.

I’m sure we’ve all faced this exact situation. What have you learned that was successful in gaining the buy-in of your peers? Share with the group….

How To Deal With The Person Who Has No Filter

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Image courtesy of Gratisography
Image courtesy of Gratisography

Not long ago, I was sitting in a discussion where the topic was fairly controversial and the opinions of the group seemed to vary pretty dramatically. In fact, it really seemed as if there were becoming two ‘camps’ on the topic, and the camps were pretty far apart. During the conversation, someone behind me mumbled to themselves out loud a disparaging remark about a comment the other side was making. It struck me that the person really needed to turn on their filter, and likely didn’t realize what they were doing. In fact, this is one of those times where I wanted to turn around and ask them if they knew they just said it out loud!

We all have those moments though. We let our emotions, thoughts and frustrations take control of our mouths and we end up saying things we wish we hadn’t. But as a leader, it’s important that you realize the impact your words, even unintentional, can have on your team and credibility. Even in this age of ‘saying it like it is’, as a leader you really don’t have that luxury if you intend to maintain your influence on the team or organization.

But what causes some people to be able to control their emotions and their tongue during stressful or contentious conversations, and others just seem to say what’s on their mind openly, and without a filter? I’m not talking about a person who has the confidence to share their opinion or voice their concerns openly in a constructive way. That isn’t what this is about. I am talking about the person who mumbles under their breath, blurts out negative responses to a conversation or says things that are totally inappropriate for the moment. Or, sometimes it’s the person who just Can’t. Stop. Talking.

The term ‘without a filter’ is a pretty common one used today to describe a person who speaks without tact, seems to blurt out their thoughts or is generally seen as very blunt. The phrase comes from the idea that your mouth says what your brain thinks without consideration to the audience, situation or time. But, being frank or blunt does not mean you lack a filter. In fact, depending on the culture of where you are, or where you’re from, it might actually be normal or considered necessary.

But, lacking a filter is really something different. When someone ‘lacks a filter’, it means that they don’t give consideration to the audience, and often end up saying things that are rude, condescending, or downright mean. Telling someone they are an idiot during a meeting, making a crass comment about another person’s mis-fortune, or cracking an inappropriate joke out loud could all fall into this category.

People who lack a filter often aren’t aware that they lack it. They have likely been told before, and might even make light of the trait, but ultimately, they don’t make any changes because they don’t really see it as an issue. They quickly defend themselves and say that this is ‘just who they are’ or ‘how they were raised.’ I once worked with someone who lacked a filter, and while it was discussed several times, he insisted he was from Chicago, and ‘that’s just how we are.’ Strangely, I’ve worked with many other people from Chicago, and they didn’t act like this person, so I suspect he was just making an excuse, or I misunderstood which Chicago he was from!

As a leader, having the ‘no filter Fred’ on your team can be a real problem. Since they lack judgement on what to say, and when to say it, they end up creating hard feelings with the team, alienate customers, and generally run roughshod over the organization. No matter what people say, they just don’t add value to the team, and create a difficult workplace for everyone.

So, what can you do when you have a ’no filter Fred’ on the team? The list below is an escalating set of steps you can follow to help change the behavior, and restore sanity to the team.

  • Point out the behavior early – If you are a new leader to the team, the worst thing you can do is to let this go on for too long. After the first meeting where you observe the behavior, you need to pull the team member aside and let them know that you noticed the unfiltered comments. It’s important that you are specific with them, and give them concrete examples of what they said, and how it was perceived by you, and the team.
  • Coach for comments – Once you have identified the offender, and you’ve pointed out their behavior, you need to keep an eye out for future behaviors. If it continues, coaching the employee before meetings is the next step. Pull them aside before a meeting starts (any meeting where you think they are likely to continue their behavior) and let them know that you expect they will control their comments, and you will be watching. If this person needs to present, or have a more formal speaking role, you should give them some examples of how they can word the more controversial topics and input. Don’t leave this up to chance. Remember, they are saying what they think, so helping them think differently will help them say things differently.
  • Put it in writing – If the person hasn’t picked up your guidance to this point, it is likely time to start documenting the behavior. At this point, it doesn’t need to be a formal counseling session (unless the behavior is egregious) but an opportunity for you to give them something to take with them to read over several times, and focus on what you are telling them. Just like the early coaching, you need to provide concrete examples of what they said, who they said it to, and how it impacts the team. In these examples, be sure to include the perceived impact that you think the behavior is having on the team and you. Your perception should matter to them (remember, you’re the leader), so make sure you tell them how you are starting to think about them as a team member.
  • Try a face to face – This step might not work in all cases, but sometimes having another team member sit with you to talk to the offender can have an impact as well. Preferably, having someone who is willing to tell them how they come across, and share examples of how it makes them feel as a co-worker can be effective. But, never put a team member on the spot if they are uncomfortable or feel like they don’t want to confront the employee.
  • Get formal – At some point, despite your persistence and coaching, people just aren’t willing to change. If that’s the case, it’s time to put the concerns down in a more formal way. Work with your HR department to be sure you are documenting correctly, and have documented all the previous discussions and opportunities you have provided them. When you document, you need to give concrete examples (again) of what is unacceptable. Let the team member know, in no uncertain terms, that the behavior has to stop, and if they can’t make changes, they may be terminated. Remember, this is about the team, no matter how technically proficient the offending person is. No one person is so invaluable that they should be tolerated at the expense of the rest of the team.
  • Terminate your relationship – Ultimately, if the person hasn’t gotten the message by now, they are likely unwilling to make changes. At this point, it’s best to sever the working relationship and ask the person to leave. While this is never easy, realize that they did this to themselves, and their lack of ability to make changes, or unwillingness to embrace coaching opportunities was the cause of the termination, not you!

In any of the cases above, if you DO see improvements, or them trying hard to make changes, be sure to thank them and encourage them immediately. This isn’t going to be easy for them, and you want to reinforce the good behaviors and expectations you have for them early and often. Hopefully this reinforcement will serve to let them know that change is possible, and better teamwork is ahead. But it doesn’t always work out like we want.

What are the risks of you not addressing the ‘no filter Fred’ on your team? Is it possible that this truly is ‘just the way he is’, and the rest of the team members aren’t as bothered by it as much as you are? Doubtful.

I once had an employee who was badgering the rest of the team members, unbeknownst to me. She was doing this when I wasn’t around, and had become abrasive, abusive and downright rude. Other things had happened as well such as degrading comments out loud with the team, and even making comments about other team members in front of customers. It was a bad situation. Once the behavior came to light, and I began to talk to other team members to get a feel for the behavior, they consistently said that they didn’t say anything because ‘it’s just the way she was’, and figured it would never change.

But what the team didn’t realize was, her behavior was impacting all of them more negatively than they thought. In fact, according to a two decade study by TelAviv University, one of the biggest predictors of an employee’s health was their coworkers. According to their research, employees who had no peer social support (remember, no filter Fred is NOT supportive) were 2.4 times more likely to die than those who had a supportive work team.

The Gallup organization, a national workplace research firm, has a question on their Employee Engagement Survey that asks whether the employee has a best friend at work. The purpose behind this question gets to the same issue. Those employees who have a friend at work, someone they can count on and talk to, are more productive and happier. This happiness directly impacts their overall engagement, and affects everything from turnover to the organizations perception in the community. No filter Fred is hurting your organization much more than you realize.

As a leader, you can’t let no filter Fred continue his reign of destruction. You team is counting on you, and the organization is being negatively impacted the longer you let him continue. Set your mind to do something about it, and do it soon. Your success may depend on it.

Have you ever had a co-worker or team member like no filter Fred? How did you deal with it? What was their reaction when you did?