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It’s important to note that everyone has good days and bad days. Losing a client, flubbing a presentation or even having a frustrating commute can put a generally kind and even-keeled person in a bad mood. A bad attitude, however, is typically a state of mind, and it has the potential to permeate a workplace and drag everyone down with it. If you’re a colleague, you may be able to steer clear of this personality type or steel yourself for necessary interactions; as a manager, you may need to choose between redirecting behavior or letting a bad attitude staffer go, rather than run the risk of alienating other employees.
How Negativity Impacts a Workplace
A negative attitude doesn’t just put others in a bad mood – it also has a tangible, measurable impact on how an office functions. Here are some of the effects of an unchecked negative attitude:
- Lackluster performance
- Unwillingness to work collaboratively
- Dismal outlook
- Unwillingness to try new things
- Reduced energy levels
- Depressive feelings
- Reduced quality of work product
- Poor customer engagement
- Difficulty overcoming obstacles
Negativity can breed contempt and create an environment where there’s no incentive to try, colleagues don’t trust one another and people strive to get through the day rather than thrive, succeed and take initiative.
How Positivity Impacts a Workplace
When there are positive attitudes in a workplace, there’s a feeling that anything can be accomplished. Colleagues support each other and work in tandem, and a host of other positive outcomes materialize, such as:
- Increased productivity
- Greater probability of collaboration and teamwork
- Improved morale
- Ability to overcome adversity
- Willingness to think creatively and try new things
- Willingness to share information and ideas
- Lower turnover
- Increased sense of camaraderie
- Improved customer service
Positivity can be contagious, where everyone feels like they’re on the same team, the effort is collective, and everyone’s ideas are valued and welcomed.
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Whether you are new to the workplace or a seasoned employee, problems occur at work.
The following are some workplace challenges and how to deal with them.
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How do you embrace team cooperation skills in the workplace?
For an organization to run smoothly and meet its goals, it is important to foster a work environment that supports collaboration amongst colleagues. Unfortunately for most organizations, team cooperation does not occur naturally. Thus you must make an effort and take steps to help build and sustain a cooperative work environment.
Team cooperation in the workplace can mean many things. It involves the level at which employees participate in decision-making, how management and employees work together to resolve problems, and how all levels of the organization work together to achieve common goals.
There are many activities and steps that the leadership – along with the employees – can take to help improve cooperation skills in the workplace.
1. Teamwork must become part of your workplace culture
For coworkers to successfully collaborate, the leadership within the organization must work to make collaboration one of the key values of the enterprise. Employees must see that the leadership within the firm works together as a team to accomplish goals. Also, the company’s leadership must award teams publicly when they are successful at working together to achieve their objectives.
To truly improve cooperation skills, leaders must provide an environment where employees are not afraid to share their ideas. Leaders must create a culture where the exchange of ideas is encouraged and rewarded. Teamwork and collaboration must be a central theme of the mission statement to improve team cooperation.
2. Provide teams with the resources they need to work together
To make improvements with communication, the organization must provide the necessary resources to the teams. This includes comfortable work spaces where the teams can work together. If the teams are spread out amongst different locations, then the organization must provide the resources that allow the teams to work together remotely, such as video conferencing.
How to Cultivate Positivity
You can go a long way in cultivating an attitude of positivity in your workplace by being respectful, inclusive and supportive of staffers.
- Don’t allow gossip or cliquish behavior to thrive
- Express appreciation for a job well done
- Share credit
- Celebrate successes
You can also increase the odds of having a positive workforce by hiring people with positive outlooks. Question future candidates about how they handle disappointment and setbacks and whether they enjoy team-working environments.