There’s not much to be optimistic about these days. All the more reason to inject some positivity into your department — fast.
No one’s expecting you to act like Little Miss or Mr. Sunshine — in fact that could lead your people to think you were out of touch (or losing it).
But now more than ever the people who look to you will want to feel like your department is a positive place to work.
Here are a few ways to go about that:
- Celebrate what’s good. There may not be much good news these days, but there’s got to be some. A/P broke its own record for number of invoices processed in a month? That’s cause for some celebrating. And if you can’t come up with anything, you may want to start tracking some new internal metrics so by next month there is.
- Focus on what you can fix. Your company can’t do much about the mortgage mess or the stock market, but there are things you can control within the universe of your own company, or even in your own industry. Talk about that with staffers and set some goals to help them feel like they’re making progress.
- Overcommunicate. Many people will always assume the worst. And in times like these, if you’re too silent, your department — and maybe even your entire company –will quickly be consumed with negative rumors and nervous speculation. Keep people updated (even when the news isn’t the best). It’s make for a much more pleasant tone overall.