Things You Need to Know

Professionalism

Naughty and Nice

December 01, 2010

Every child knows that even as I type, a merry old gentleman, widely recognized by his long white beard and bright red outfit, watches you, Dear Reader, checking to see if you are being naughty or nice. Wouldn’t it be grand if someone would undertake this same task at work?

Jerks at work can be phenomenally costly to organizations. At a very minimum, these people damage those who are on the receiving end of their bad behavior. Nasty co-workers and/or bosses diminish performance by driving away good interns, summer associates and new hires at staggering rates.

In a recent New York Times article, (“How Bad Apples Infect the Tree,” 11/28/10, Business Section, pg. 8), Robert Sutton described one Silicon Valley executive’s solution, which she derived from her love of white water rafting. It seems this executive had begun shooting the rapids while still a teenager. Early on, a river guide instructed her: “If you fall out of the boat, don’t fight the rapids. Just rely on your life vest and float with your feet out in front of you. That way, if you are thrown up against the rocks, you can use your feet to push off, and you’ll protect your head and conserve energy.”

The executive reported that she used this strategy to survive loads of nasty meetings. Negative comments bounced off of her in the same manner that her feet had bounced off the rocks when she fell into a river years earlier. When meetings turned into personal attack sessions, she simply stretched her feet out in front of her and reminded herself that she knew how to survive. Most importantly, she took control of the situation and avoided victimization.

To the extent you must work with negative people, try employing these rapid-racing techniques. If you are in charge of building and managing teams, take on Santa’s mantle and realize that you must deal with those who are naughty. Failing to do so is bad etiquette and harms office morale and performance.

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