How to Handle a Negative Personality at Work

Before we go too far let's get a few definitions sorted out first: we are looking here at handling a 'negative personality'. What we mean is the sort of person who, at work, is always negative, regardless of the subject matter or issue.
Identifying a negative personality

We are not talking about the person who is arguing against your idea in one or two areas: that may well be helpful conflict: forcing thinking and preventing OSINTOTs. An OSINTOT is "Oh, Sugar, I Never Thought Of That": for example; the boss announces that he is going to take all the sales team away to the Caribbean for a week long all expenses paid 'conference' to reward them for a job-well-done but spouses and partners aren't invited. Someone points out that this may well be counter productive for sales people in long term relationships whose partners may not see this as a benefit but as another week apart. The boss ignores the comment and labels the commentator as being negative. Two sales people decline to go on the trip and an argument ensues that results in the top performer quitting.

It might help to identify the sort of behaviours we see from genuinely negative people:

never a smile at work unless it is at someone else's misfortuneconstant whining about the job/hours/clueless bosses/useless colleagues/poor facilities/inadequate tools/low paynegative response to every aspect of every suggestion that anyone (other than themselves) ever makesnever misses an opportunity to point out how busy they are and or how hard they workknows his or her rights and is constantly reminding people that they know themlooks at every issue in relation to his or her rights regardless of any other considerationtakes full advantage of every one of his or her rights (eg refuses to answer the phone during meal break even if it is actually driving them mad with ringing)either is a clock watcher (never arrives before contracted hours and always leaves spot on contracted stopping time) ora martyr (always comes in early and goes home late but doesn't actually do anything very productive during this extra time)sees 'customers' (whoever the customers are) as a nuisance that gets in their way, rather than as the people who ultimately pay their wages.makes a beeline for any new employee and immediately starts to drip feed a diet of negativity into themcarries out all actions with the speed of a stunned slug and the grace of an overflowing septic tanknever does anything immediately; every request has to be done later "because I'm just soooo busy"

Why we need to actively handle a negative personality- there are three fundamental reasons why we need to handle a negative personality and they are slightly different if you are a manager trying to manage them or a team member trying to work with (or in spite of) them.

Negative personalities are self-destructive: their bahaviour is career limiting and, studies suggest, even life limiting. If you have any sort of humanist streak then you will want to try to help them to hep themselves to cheer up.Negative personalities are harder to manage than balanced or positive people: the more time and effort you have to put into managing a negative person (or if you are a co-worker dealing with or even avoiding them) the less time you have for managing the more productive staff (or doing your own job properly)Negative people infect others: they put off customers (let's be honest here haven't you ever had an experience as a customer and thought that you'd never go back to that supplier simply because a staff member made you feel as if you were as welcome as a dose of the 'flu?). They put off other staff members, This happens in several ways: other staff members have to spend valuable time listening to their woes and gripes. Other staff members have any potential enthusiasm they may have slowly ground down by the consistent negativity. Good staff member who have ambition and joie de vivre can't take it so they actually leave and go elsewhere, and what you are left with is an increasingly toxic work environment where the general attitude is that life is hard, managers are incompetent and we are all just hanging on for our pensions! Finally negative people actually put off potential employees with chutzpah and encourage people like them to joy your organisation.

There are three ways to handle the issue of a negative personality at work:

Isolate the negative personality- Sir Earnest Shackleton was a past master at isolating negative people from his team, especially the younger or more 'corruptable' members. He kept the negative people close to him so that he could influence and manage their negativity, rather than pushing them away (the more intuitive action) and therefore allowing them freedom to infect others. If you can isolate negative people from others in a more literal sense then do so, remote working, home working or moving to a solo job may be a viable option IF the person actually produces results. Beware of 'isolation' that actually exposes; a business had a senior administrator who had a negative personality and was infecting all her colleagues, the manager decided to isolate her in a literal sense; put her in a job where she worked alone. His solution: the Reception Desk. "Nice work, Einstein! Now every customer who rings or visits is exposed to her negativity". To be fair she did insult a customer in her third week, so badly that she was summarily dismissed, so the end result was possibly good but a very good customer was sacrificed on the way.Convert their negativity- Explain the rationale for actions and procedures that they complain about, ask them for their opinions, where possible give them the choice of how to do things. Take time to ask them to consider the upside of the things they compain about, take time to ask them how much worse things could be for them (in the current economic climate having a job you think of as 'lousy' with an employer you think of as 'rubbish' for a boss you think of as an 'idiot' is still better than being out of work and out of hope!) You will note that most of the conversion approach is about them doing the talking rather than you telling them; this geves them the feeling that someone gives a damn what they think and it gives them some ownership of their opinions rather than being a passive listener to yours.Distract their negativitySometimes you can distract them by giving them extra responsibility; this is a strategy that has its dangers so be careful. A man in a company had a reputation for being completely toxic but the management had never actually managed this effectively. The company brought in a Quality programme and the man was sent on the first training session (just as a matter of course, not specially selected), on the first day he muttered and criticised and whined and argued and was a general pain to the trainer. On the second day he applied to be a 'champion' of the new quality programme- it was doing all the things he felt the company should have been doing for years. He got the job and went on to be a real asset to the company.Remove the negative person-If you try everything and still fail then the only sensible option is to remove the negative person from the team permanently. Whether you counsel them out, make their role redundant, or sack them is entirely a matter for you but you can't just leave them there as a proof of your failure to manage. and finally please, please don't take the 'shove them sideways into a sinecure job' approach. This will just perpetuate the Peter Principle and pass the headache on to someone else in the organisation; it actually reinforces the behaviors that you can't bear!

You locate workers, giving them feedback

In 1947, he wrote psychologist BF Skinner novel, presents his vision of utopia. Two Skinner's Walden, which is described in the service of technology with the most routine of the efficient, effective and human existence more intellectual tasks and social activities, such as the scientific exploration of artistic expression or for leisure. All the necessary work has been reached within a few hours per day. Deviantní behavior in this endeavour requires the control of the systematic application of techniques to changes in behaviour, eliminating the need for police or prison. Children learn on their own, on his own career development, education, simplification and training systems is even more effective learning. Health care is also facilitated by implementing systematic and universal prevention programmes to reduce smoking and healthy eating and activity for every citizen.

In the decade since the publication of this book, systems company automation, communication and information technologies, which allow a large part of what Skinner was made in 1947. A still greater use of technologies and the diversity of applications of the technology, at least in general have no effect on social issues. Efficiency at work automation to increase the effectiveness of the company is not a great book. Many of the problems of organization and social Skinner solutions that remain in your book. Systems of education, health and General society became more complex and as a result of this complexity, often dysfunkcí. It seems that attempts to use the technology of human behaviour, such as increased surveillance, lead to counter-productive measures contributing to organizational complexity. The current situation developed to the point of organizational theory developed in the adoption of this natural and biological complex organization that organizations that control the behavior of participants of the prevailing opinion. Technology has a parallel development, allowing complex organizations. Use of technology so that changes in behaviour that Skinner for the eyes, it is regarded as the boundaries of freedom and dignity. A paradoxical is that trying to control the behavior of the head of the other restrictions on the freedom and dignity of the destructive. At the same time, this practice increases the complexity of the Organization, helps companies still inefficient.administrative complexity could be reduced if the correct use of technologies for monitoring the behaviour is implémentée.alors can be spared the dignity and freedom of increased crackdown constant monitoring.

The core technologies used for the control is called feedback or closed loop control systems. This concept is the basis for a simple and elegant technologies which have been used in many ways, perhaps a multitude of ways, the effectiveness of the actions as well as the effectiveness and improve the management of the many.close comments with psychological changes in the behaviour of the techniques developed by psychologists theory still differ as Skinner and others however and is very effective way to change and control of many forms of behaviour humain.Commentaires control technology for human behavior and organization of relatively infrequently. The increased demand for technology management comments in many cases, the improvement of human behaviour and at the same time simplify organization.

Feedback control technology has been under-utilisation of human behaviors and technologies of the information is widely used. This situation has evolved since the State of the theory of general systems theory accepted as the main organization on Cybernetics, organizational theory, derived from the theory of management of comments. Cybernetics has its disadvantages such as organizational theory. But General shade of Cybernetics, systems that demand specific feedback control technology, theory can be beneficial. This evolution has led to a bias against control information also creates a bias against the change in the behavior of data collection and reporting surveillance systems.the result is a tendency for organizations trying to control the number of variables to the collection and treatment of information that possible.Ceci increases the complexity of the organization. The use of information as a means of controlling people, leading to environmental management, it may be counterproductive. Change of behavior using technology can reduce variable interactions in organizations and therefore the complexity.

The dominant theory of organization also affects how the deployment of the technology in your organization. The reason for the replacement of a man is not necessary because the technology more efficiently or more productive, but because it is easier to control and discipline. Communication between your computer and is part of a person with a specific purpose or a rash on the memory. If two people together in a system to communicate, communicate, but the action necessarily. System that only technology can ensure action, but for the communication.Système not necessarily people and technologies used in the interaction ensures communication and action. For example, consider the actions of employees, which is any kind of technology, it is possible to look at.Comments on the system goes directly to the employee to correct feedback error., goes to the central controller and interpreted by the administrator, who then used the information, how it has responded.staff receives feedback, but perhaps not.If several employees by the hundreds, the data on a central controller, increase the variables and the complex system of this type of system, you can easily change locally, closed-loop feedback for the benefit of the single employee feedback management system.feedback is something simple like audible upomínky or promotion positive.la key is local, and immediate feedback with the intention of changing behaviour.

Change collection, feedback control systems are an example of how fine, but can lead to profound differences of fleet information is used in control of people in the first instance to the collection and treatment of .the information systems technology that slightly differently in monitoring the comments this change in behavior and control more effectively and in the process of simplification of the organization.

Exchange systems for wireless communication devices

It is through mobile phones and message text on your computer is an exchange of internal system even faster and more reliable way to attract attention and knowledge workers. The main advantages with implementing wireless paging systems are:

The reliability of the RF signal is poor, a common problem in many devices from mobile phone, particularly in heavy structured buildings and below the level of mobile phone reception floor.as cell tower nearest, which means that the call and bad reception can be a constant problem for each device is not close to paging cellule.système Tower on-site uses a local radio station designed to cover the whole of the complete RF device that provides a reliable message text at any time.

The speed of transmission of the text for the message to the destination time depends entirely on service provider and the communication with cargo, explain why text messages may take some time to be paid. The existing system, paging messages will be delivered in 2 - 3 seconds after all the time, regardless of it is sent to a single operator or a large group of operators.

The safety of mobile phones are great connectivity tool, but offer some unacceptable security and privacy problems. All mobile activities are tracked and documented their service - providers for information on how that into the wrong hands.Features such as the integrated camera, GPS and microphones to constitute a serious risk for private meetings, information of a sensitive work, protected areas etc.Avec internal Exchange system ensures that you have control of all your personnel data.Another issue is radiation from cell phone, especially in low-income areas within.lowest approval ensures that mobile phones by their maximum ability to stay in touch with local base more radiation and greater threat to the user, an internal system functions as a connection for communication unidirectionnelle.Depuis page, they have adopted only operators database creation of any cancellation.

The control with an internal pagination system also means that you have full control over your urgent messages needs, instead of another company in place to pay monthly fees or to hire a third-party provider, mobile operators coût.au placement start the system paging, without additional costs for in-house for the purchase of a home.

Modern exchange offer much more than only messages from texte.Ces systems can be produced, such as alphanumeric led to public places displaying speakers PA voice messages and light flash visual warnings wireless wireless systems spéciaux.lorsque you use, these security products and to improve communication on the device.