"G" Is For Gossip
/As always, I want to offer my sincere apology to Sue Grafton for using (stealing??) her approach for the titles of her many outstanding mystery novels for this series of articles that I hope makes YOU a happier and more effective leader working with a truly empowered team that really enjoys what they do! Oh, and if you have not read any of Ms. Grafton novels I highly recommend that you give her a try.
Office Gossip
“I mean the great advantage of a place like Knox (Business Machines) is that you can sort of turn off your mind every morning at nine and leave it off all day, and nobody knows the difference.”
- Frank Wheeler
Revolutionary Road
By Richard Yates
Over my five decades in the workforce, I think that I may have heard them all.
“Your boss just got caught having sex with one of his Teamers in a conference room!”
So what?
“There are layoffs coming!”
Not true, since I was the one usually doing the layoffs and I hadn’t been told anything yet!
“There were bits of glass in the ham salad that made people sick!”
Not true, I had made the salad.
Standing around the “water cooler” and listening to rumors, politics and gossip is a waste of time. Have a Rumor Round-Up agenda item at the end of all of your meetings, but don’t dwell on this “stuff.” You will hear things that you simply can’t believe, and most likely they are true, but ignore them anyway and focus your time on improving your Teamers and the quality of your team’s work in these specific areas:
Finding, empowering and keeping the best talent possible.
Improving communications inside and outside your team.
Managing your team’s projects and quality.
Working daily with specific key core values that guide what you say, do and think.
Eliminating time spent on things that you should not worry about.
Do not involve yourself in rumors, gossip or politics! Enough said?
“Put your heart, mind and soul into even your smallest acts. This is the secret of success.”
- Swami Sivananda
I wish you empowerment, happiness and every success!!\
Jonesy