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 Teaching Optimism Skills in the Workplace - Fall 1996 PROBLEM: In his recent bestseller Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman described the profoundly negative effects that habitually pessimistic attitudes can have in the workplace. For example, he points to one study that found that people who had chronic feelings of pessimism, anxiety and hostility had double the risk for asthma, ulcers, heart disease, etc. Pessimism seems to be as toxic as smoking or high cholesterol is for heart disease. He also discusses two studies by psychologist Martin Seligman, who found that optimistic sales people sold anywhere from 37% to 57% more life insurance than their more pessimistic colleagues. So pessimism can have a negative effect on our financial health as well. SOLUTION: In his book Learned Optimism, Seligman reported that optimism can be taught; we don't have to be "born" pessimists. He uses a technique called cognitive restructuring that involves identifying the kinds of negative habitual thoughts we have and choosing to change them. For example, you might think "I'll never be good enough" after a sales prospect says "no" to you. This kind of negative thought will cause you to feel depressed. You can challenge the negative thought by asking, "How do I know that I'll never be good enough?" Once you realize that there is no rational basis for this thought, then you can choose to replace it with the more optimistic thought, "I'll do better next time." Focusing on that new thought will change your negative mood into a more positive one. EXAMPLE: A manager in an organization that offers emergency services was feeling very pessimistic about his ability to turn his ailing department around. He was so discouraged that he was losing a number of hours a week to wheel spinning and worrying. I was hired to help him get moving. After carefully listening to his analysis, I pointed out to him that he was turning everything into a catastrophe and asked him to explore the impact of his catastrophic thinking on himself and his staff. After gaining some insight into the damaging consequences of his pessimistic thinking, we then systematically worked on challenging and replacing his negative thoughts with more optimistic ones. RESULTS: Within a few months his mood had dramatically changed for the better and he reported that his productivity doubled. SUMMARY: Teaching your people to be more optimistic will take time and practice. But it can be done and it will have positive effects on their health, morale and effectiveness. |
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