The success and failure of your business might be unknown for you when everything seems to be rolling just fine. Instead of thinking of the reason for it as the working criteria, try to think about how the people get along and how great the working environment feels like to the employees. Having a great team of professionals that can’t find happiness in their working place is the first step to a toxic culture and a bigger problem in the future. When the toxicity hits a team, productivity drops, and tensions arise.
To turn things around, here are five advices for a happy team environment.
- Positive energy and a smile
It doesn’t matter what your position is in a company. You can be the manager, director, entry-level team member or the cleaning responsible. You and your mood will always affect the culture around the working place through the energy you choose to bring in. Remembering the good old pieces of advice from our grandparents: “Treat others the way you want people to treat you”. This statement is nothing but the truth. Being the change that you want to see allows you to affect people in a positive way. If you are a leader, your influence should then be greater and more inspiring to people. Focusing on solutions, on relationships and teamwork are also goals that should be a priority to business. Everyone has bad days. However, if you can keep a smile to a colleague that is not entirely aware of how your day is going bad, shows your strong personality, as well as your empathy skills.
- Invest time on yourself and your colleagues
A negative and toxic environment is not created overnight, it is a virus that has his roots for while spreading to everyone in an undesirable way. At the same way, positive behavior is not conquered within just a few days. Time is needed for people to get used to the new mission statement of turning the working place into a better and brighter atmosphere. As a leader, you need to monitor the ongoing change and incentive it. With the investment of consistent actions and time, a new culture will rise. As an example of what you can do to make everyone happier, take one day a month to do some outdoor activity like kayaking, walking or going to drink some coffee all together. Include this activity in the working schedule and show to your employees that they deserve a reward for their good work.
- Facing the company as a product
Attracting talented staff and customers goes through a positive outcome within the companies themselves. Seeing a company as an internal product helps a business attract and retain the best talents in the industry, which is as important as the external products built for the company’s customers. “Culture doesn’t just help attract amazing people, it amplifies their abilities and helps them do their best work”.
- The working culture starts in the hiring
Change your hiring skills to reflect the culture you want to achieve. One of the biggest mistakes business owners make is hiring people based on expertise and skills only. Determining candidates’ attitudes and openness together with their expertise is the wisest way to hire someone. Bet on the right horses, meaning you should bring in people who reflect the environment you want inside your business. Hiring a closed minded individual with a negative perspective towards life will spread the virus you want to eradicate.
- Being an expert at communication
If there is any kind of key or secret to a healthy team is communication. This one thing is responsible and vital to the succeeding culture building. The main line is, if you want to have an excellent culture, you need to be a good communicator; in person by phone, by writing and even with your corporal language. When you can communicate clearly and well, you will be respected. If you struggle with communication, don’t give up already. There are tools to help you with achieving a better way of interacting with others.
Communication should never be a flaw in your personal and mainly professional life. Misunderstandings can lead to clutter and toxic environments. Shutting down yourself to ideas, comments, thoughts, and feelings will contribute to an unhealthy working culture. Speak your mind, make others understand you and your motivations. Discuss and listen to understand. Be the example you want to see and turn around the poisonous work atmosphere.