Toxic Positivity: How Too Much Positivity Hurt Your Organisation

Nowadays, many companies focus on employee recognition and rewards. Everyone wants to create a workplace with good vibes. Unfortunately, not everyone understands the difference between highlighting positive employee actions and full-on banning any glimmer of negativity. 

This article is about toxic positivity, a manipulation tactic that became popular during the pandemic. 

 

What is toxic positivity? 

Toxic positivity is any action that suppresses, minimises, invalidates real negative emotions on the part of another person. In the workplace, an example of toxic positivity goes like this: 

"You should try harder to be more positive."

 When an employee shares a legitimate concern, an employer telling them to be positive is highly dismissive. 

The correct response is to listen to the employee's concern and following it with "Can you tell me more?". The aim is to make the employee feel heard and not judged for their sentiments. 

 

"Everything will be fine."

It is okay to acknowledge that things are not alright. When people were being laid off right and left during the lockdown, many executives insisted that everything was fine when it wasn't. 

Do not make false promises about your employees' future. Managers should be honest, open and specific about problems and the plans to address them.

For example, an acceptable phrase would be something like, "Right now, things are very uncertain, but we truly value your contribution to the organisation. We are currently working on contingency plans, and we will be sharing information with you as soon as it is available. Your manager will conduct a quick meeting first thing every morning to keep you updated on developments."

 

"2020/2021 was a huge challenge, but we got over it!"

It is not okay to gloss over the enormous impact of something as life-changing as the pandemic. Millions of people lost their loved ones and livelihoods.

 

"You will be fine. At least it's not X."

Do not invalidate or minimise an employee's loss or fear about a given experience. In these cases, the manager should listen instead of talk and allow the employee to let it out. 

A company cannot survive by pretending everything is okay. 

What toxic positivity does to your company

When you let toxic positivity run rampant in your workplace, it can lead to:

Deterioration of employees' mental health. 
Studies say that "when people think others expect them not to feel negative emotions, they experience more negative emotion and reduced wellbeing."

 

Lack of trust among employees.
When employees cannot express what they honestly think or feel, they will withhold their thoughts and feelings, leading to intense emotional labour. Colleagues know when someone's not honest, and in the end, no one trusts each other.

 

Triangulation.
It happens when leaders are so focused on getting their employees to be positive that they do not listen to what they are struggling with. As a result, the struggling employees would rather speak to others than going straight to the leader who could help them solve the problem. It erodes trust to a great degree and is terrible for company culture. 

These are only three ways a culture of 'only good vibes allowed' can negatively affect your workers. There are many more. 

 

Avoiding toxic positivity in your organisation

These are five ways to lay the groundwork for a more inclusive and open narrative at your workplace: 

1. Stop going for positive spins. Preferably, managers should keep communication open and transparent. Allow employees to discuss negative issues and follow up with a dialogue about solutions.

2. When emotions run high, looking at the facts will provide a balance. If your employees start to become pessimistic, it is best not to stop them. Guide them back to a more positive standpoint by facing facts that go beyond their feelings about a given issue.

3. Stay flexible and get ready to be unprepared. In some situations, there are no answers. A leader should be honest enough to say, "I don't know, but I hope we can figure it out together."

4. Don't label employees as "negative". When you label them as such, you paint them into a corner where they never can raise any issues without looking like a negative nancy. 

5. Your employees are humans; treat them as such. Keep a close eye on your daily interaction and your managers' interaction with the employees. Ask your workers to raise a red flag when things get a little too optimistic.

 

That's it, a simple guide on toxic positivity to help you understand it faster and easier. 

Source: bountixp

 

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