Be a Force for good

Do you ever wonder what your colleagues think about your attitude? Everyone likes a person with a good ‘spirit’ but positive attitudes don’t just happen, they have to be developed. Here are some good traits to focus on.

BE AN ENERGY GIVER: Make a decision daily to focus on the positive and not to let frustrating moments spoil your day. Resist the tendency to focus on and amplify the negative. Give up your right to sulk. Go out of your way to enjoy what’s working; if you do that long enough, you’ll be surprised how quickly any negative feelings will dissipate.

GIVE DISCRETIONARY EFFORT- When you give more than is required, you announce yourself in a good way and use more of your potential. This need not be complex tasks. Simple but important contributions like being more creative, supporting colleagues, giving regular feedback all help to increase overall productivity and to grow your profile.

TAKE OWNERSHIP: Don’t only ‘brighten the corner where you are’ but make the success of the whole organization your business. Whatever your level you can take ownership for something; your own performance, the team’s productivity or a colleague’s progress.

EXERCISE OBJECTIVITY: Every office has its cliques and internal networks but don’t be known for blindly defending certain people or positions. Separate issues from personalities and emotions from fact. If you get emotional about an issue, take a step back, see things from a different perspective and try not to make things personal.

BE GENEROUS WITH GOODWILL: This is the best gift you can bring to the workplace. Will things happen to make you mad? Sure. Will you sometimes feel treated unfairly? Quite likely; but what you must not do is to hold a grudge, seek revenge or act out of bitterness. Giving others the benefit of the doubt is a good philosophy to have.

REMAIN FLEXIBLE: Things move so quickly in today’s work world that flexibility is a core skill. Be available when needed; better still volunteer - for roles that will add to your skills and help you experiment in a safe space. Offering to help out shows enthusiasm and interest in being a reliable team member and going the extra mile when necessary.

ALWAYS ACT FAIRLY: A sense of fairness is a great asset especially if you are in a position of authority. Being fair is about giving equal opportunity, not showing favoritism, not backing the indefensible and certainly not being divisive. It’s treating people as adults.

BE FORWARD LOOKING: Hindsight helps us make wiser decisions today. If you have been in your workplace a long time don’t be the ‘resident historian’ for the sake of it, Use your knowledge of previous events to improve the chances of new ideas succeeding.

NOW TAKE ACTION: Find out from colleagues and friends what your good attitudes are