Out of control complaints at work can sabotage an otherwise great business. It’s a culture shift that may not be visible right away but will soon appear on your bottom line.
As a leader, how can you be attentive to problems but not let them dominate the workday? Find out how you can control complaints at work in our latest episode of our Performance Improvement for Leaders series.
What Performance Questions Does This Video Answer?
- What can you do to prevent complaints at work?
- Do all complaints have value?
- Does complaining at work waste time?
- Can complaints take your focus off important tasks?
Video Transcript for Complaints at Work
Tired of hearing complaints at work? Let’s see if we can fix the problem. Complaints at work can really affect employee engagement and morale in your business. So we want to make sure that we reduce complaining as much as possible.
Obviously, there are going to be those days when people are going to complain about a situation. Sometimes, that just happens.
It’s important though for people to understand that, “Okay, vent about the problem, but then get back to work. You can’t change anything. This is tough situation that we’re in, we all have to deal with it.”
That’s a good way to approach complaints at work. Also, you want employees to be thinking about the things that they can control.
Perhaps there’s a problem that’s annoying, but it won’t be around forever. So rather than focus on it every day and just feeling miserable, focus on the good things about the job, focus on the things that you can celebrate, those little victories.
Finally, you want to make sure that people aren’t falling into a situation where they’re complaining about the same thing, day after day. It’s a never ending complaint.
For instance, I once had a friend. I didn’t see him for about 15 years. When I saw him again, he was still complaining about the same thing that he’d been complaining about 15 years ago.
It was one of those deals, where the complaint issue, he couldn’t change it. But still he spent a lot of time and energy, getting upset at something that he couldn’t change.
As I mentioned, there are always going to be things in an organization, that are not perfect. But if you can’t change them and you can’t control them, how much time and focus should you be giving to them? Think about that. I’m Ken Okel. Take care.
About This Video Series
Ken Okel’s ongoing Performance Improvement for Leaders series video series will make you more effective on the job. Every week, you’ll learn a new, easy to understand tip that you can use right away.
Got a challenge at work? Let us know and we’ll feature it in an upcoming episode.
About Ken Okel
As a motivational speaker, Ken Okel works with leaders and organizations to boost productivity, performance, and profits. At conferences, conventions, and company meetings, he engages audiences with new ways to maximize their time at work. To see a sample of his keynote and workshop presentations, visit his video page.
