The Dangers of Workplace Gossip

Work is a social environment. It’s very important to maintain good relationships with your coworkers, to be friendly, and to engage them in conversation. But work can also be a hotbed of drama. Conversations can easily turn to gossip, and that is a dangerous place to go.

How do you know the difference between harmless conversation and gossip? Simple: Consider the impact of what is being said.

• Does it cast negative aspersions?
• Does it create rifts?
• Does it exult in the misfortune of others?
• Does it have a negative emotional charge?
• Does it serve to perpetuate conflict or negativity?
• Is it hurtful or damaging?
• Would you say it in front of the person you’re talking about?

Technically, any sharing of trivial or unsubstantiated information can be considered gossip. But you have to consider the sentiment. For example, if it were rumored that a coworker is being promoted, and you discuss it with another coworker, is that gossip?

Well, if the discussion is hurtful, damaging, or negative, then yes, it's gossip. If the story is told with negativity and without good will, then it's gossip. Light conversation is value neutral, while gossip is negative, inflammatory, and/or embarrassing to the person being spoken of.

How gossip hurts

Gossip can increase conflict and decrease morale. It results in strained relationships. It breaks down the trust level within groups. Gossip is the death of teamwork, as the group breaks up into small cliques, and employees start refusing to work with others.

Offices are rife with gossip, but that doesn't make it ok.

Gossip results in the supervisor spending an enormous amount of time trying to figure out who said what to whom. Or, worse, the supervisor struggles to explain to the manager that the on-going conflicts and communication problems within the workgroup are the reason work doesn't get done. Productivity is lost, as are good employees who do not want to work in toxic environments.

Breaking the gossip cycle

Here’s how to get out of the gossip pipeline:

1. Be busy. Gossipmongers want attention. If you're preoccupied with your work, you can't be available to listen to their latest story.

2. Don’t participate. Walk away from the story. Don’t give visual clues that you are interested in listening. If someone passes a juicy story on to you, don't pass it any further. Take personal responsibility to act with integrity.

3. Turn it around by saying something positive. It isn't nearly as much fun to spread negative news if it's spoiled by a complimentary phrase about the person being attacked.

4. Avoid the gossiper. If you notice one person who consistently makes trouble, take the necessary actions to have as little interaction with that person as possible. Avoid him.

5. Keep your private life private. Don't share personal information with coworkers. Remember, it's a two-way street: if they are gossiping about others, they will gossip about you, too. Don't give them ammunition.

Don't give office gossips any attention or ammunition.

6. Choose your friends wisely at work. You spend a good deal of time at work so it's natural for friendships to develop. Share information sparingly until you are sure that you have built up a level of trust.

7. Be direct. If you confront the gossiper and confidently tell him or her that such behavior is making it uncomfortable for you and other coworkers, it's likely to stop.

8. Don't be afraid to go to a superior. Gossiping wastes a lot of company time and hurts morale. A company interested in a healthy work environment will value the opportunity to correct this type of situation.

If you are the target of gossip, learn to let it go.

Now, if you are the target of gossip you have two choices. You can confront the source or make a public statement. Thankfully, gossip has a very short life span. Sometimes, the best thing to do is let it run its (hopefully) short course. Creating a stink sometimes causes more drama than just letting it go.

Put simply: Don’t be a gossip and don’t listen to gossip. Work smart. Keep your focus on the positive and don’t engage.

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For more information on Careerstone visit our website: Careerstone Group

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About To Be Fired? Here's What To Do

Oftentimes, when people get fired or laid off, they saw it coming. They may have heard rumors or rumblings, felt a change in the atmosphere, or simply read the writing on the wall. And, in hindsight, they always wish they’d better prepared themselves.

So, if you see or sense a layoff or termination coming, take action and prepare yourself. Here are five things to do the minute you feel it coming:

1. Get your resume together. You will need it right away to get back on the market.

2. Make a list of your key accomplishments at the organization. You never know--if you can wow them with everything you've accomplished and show them how important you have been to the bottom line, you may be able to sell yourself back to the company or convince them not to let you go. In any event, it’ll help get you focused on your work and what you can offer.

3. Make a list of everything in your pay and benefits package. Think through your insurance, vacation time, etc. so you are ready to ask about it. The person doing the firing or layoffs will probably be as nervous as you, so being prepared is key.

4. Be nice. I know it may be hard to even consider being pleasant to the people who may be firing you, but you want to preserve the relationship as much as possible. They may hire you back. They may recommend you for another job or steer you in the direction of another company. Don’t burn bridges.

5. Keep it to yourself. You could be dead wrong, and you don’t want to rile people up or anger management. Just keep calm, carry on, and prepare for the worst.

And if you did get fired? Read this:

http://careerstonegroup.blogspot.com/2014/09/got-fired-heres-what-to-do.html

Good luck!

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For more information on Careerstone Group, visit www.careerstonegroup.com

For more from Mary Abbajay, visit www.careerstonegroup/media

Interview Tips: 10 Tips to Help You Hire the Right Person

Studies show that 40 percent of all hires fail. Indeed, hiring the wrong person is a huge waste of both time and money. Here are 10 tips to help you interview and hire the right person:

1. Do your homework. Think the position through thoroughly. Make a list of the skills, talents, and abilities you want for this job. We call this a competency matrix, but it’s really just a list of all the things you want. Prioritize the list, and craft questions based on what you want and need the most. And read their resumes thoroughly, check references, and do a Google search on the candidate.

2. Establish a rapport. Strike a friendly tone and use open body language. Make the interview a conversation not an interrogation. Explain the job, explain your hiring process, and be sure to thank the candidate.

3. Mind your biases. People tend to like people like themselves, so be careful you’re not just hiring yourself. Studies show that most interviewers make up their minds about a candidate in the first two minutes of the interview, so try to be open to people who are different than you.

4. Be consistent. Make sure you ask each candidate the same questions. At the end, you want to compare apples to apples, and you can’t do that if you haven’t been consistent.

5. Use behavioral-based interview questions. Past performance is indicative of future performance, so ask about real experience instead of hypotheticals. For example: “Mary, tell me about a time when you handled an irate customer” or “Steve, “tell me about a time when you lead a team.”

6. Take notes. This seems obvious but few people do it. Be sure to take notes during the interview so you can remember things later. And if you’ve made your list of competencies you can check them off or apply a rating scale.

7. Listen well and ask follow up questions. Remember, make the interview a conversation, not an interrogation.

8. Don’t forget to sell. Chances are, the candidate has other options, so the interview is an opportunity for you to sell them on the position. The candidate is also interviewing you and your company.

9. Ask the reception staff about the candidate. How did they treat your reception staff when they came in? How did they behave? This is important!

10. Follow up with the candidate as soon as possible. You are a brand, so make sure your interview process is positive. Don’t leave them hanging; it reflects poorly on your company.

Good luck!

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For more information about Careerstone Group, visit careerstonegroup.com.

For more workplace tips, visit careerstonegroup.blogspot.com.