Wooly Bully
May 6th 2012 23:32
Hey everyone,
This is not related in any way to the theme of this blog. There will be no mention of music, up and coming artists, the latest underground band that's doing things differently or about my never ending quest for new material.
This is a rather serious post about something that I've had the unfortunate opportunity to experience myself. In Canada within our educational institutions there has been an important focus these last few years on the prevention of Bullying.
The impact of bullying on young kids is more than profound. It can lead to psychological problems, health problems, low self esteem, personality disorders and in some cases even suicide.
There are many strong campaigns being led to prevent this type of behaviour at many levels. It's encouraging to see that this topic is being integrated into the curiculum and victims of this behaviour and those that are witness to this behaviour are learning to recognize the signs and more importantly they are speaking out.
In many cases the person doing the bullying is suffering from abuse as well and this often leads to them becoming bullies.
The truth is that this behaviour is not limited to our schools and it is not limited to students. Bullying in the workplace is now taking up more and more space in the media. it's not that there has been an increase in this behaviour amongst adults, it is because people have become more aware that this behaviour is simply unacceptable.
It took me five years to realize what was happening and to finally do something about it. I was the first to speak out and when i did I found out that i was not only helping myself but many others who we're suffering the same way i was...... in silence.
I will leave you with a list of 15 signs of bullying in the workplace. If you recognize that any of these things ar happening to you please do something about it. Speak up, go to your union, go to your human resources department and file a complaint. Trust me, you will thank me for it!!
Fifteen signs of workplace bullying
Continually undervaluing effort. Recognition of effort is an important motivator for every employee. Without it, people tend to decrease effort, have little desire to be in to work on time, or perform their work to the best of their ability. By undervaluing an employee’s efforts, an exceptional employee can quickly become a problem employee.
Refusing to delegate. Delegation is a tool for getting more done in less time and for developing employees. When an employee is not given the opportunity to develop, they will certainly look for the opportunity elsewhere.
Frequently changing workplace rules. When the playing field is ever changing, how can the players play the game effectively? Changing the workplace guidelines on a regular basis sets employees up for failure, "keeps them on egg shells" because they never know what the "rules of the day" are. It also undermines trust amongst co-workers.
Public humiliation. Reprimanding an employee in a meeting or in the presence of other employees, yelling at or swearing at an employee, or rolling of the eyes when an employee or co-worker is expressing an opinion are all examples of humiliation.
Personal insults and name-calling. Whether in the presence of the individual or behind the individual’s back, this tends to alienate and lends to the forming of camps, further dividing your workforce.
Over-monitoring with malicious intent. Micromanaging with the intent of finding problems undermines the ability of an individual to do their job and do it well. Over time this approach can increase the mistakes a person makes. Micromanaging can make someone feel as though their every move is being monitored and judged. It can make them nervous and take their mind off of their work, increasing stress levels and developing into health issues.
Unfair applications of leave or promotion. This occurs when the rules for promotion are not applied consistently among the staff, when some have flexibility in scheduling, or some have the freedom to come and go as they please and others do not. When one individual is singled out and the rules of the workplace are not applied consistently it constitutes as bullying. This behaviour undermines trust, decreases motivation, and creates a negative attitude toward the supervisor and the organization. This will be reflected in the quality of work of the individual if the individual does not leave the organization first.
Instigating complaints from others to make an individual appear incompetent. Not all staff complaints are genuine issues. The challenge for the supervisor is defining the difference. A well versed bully is able to manipulate others into believing that the person being bullied is incompetent and will manipulate others into joining their camp in ostracizing the one being bullied by filing complaints that are unfounded.
Constant criticism. Feedback, whether positive or negative, is a useful tool for improvement, however some mistake criticism for feedback. Regular criticism that is judgemental in nature is destructive to the individual receiving it, undermines self confidence, impacts the spirit of the individual, and instils a sense of incompetence.
Spreading malicious rumours, gossip, or innuendo. Hard to catch, yet extremely destructive to the workplace, rumours are hurtful and demeaning; they pit staff against one another and undermine the ability to work as a team.
Ignoring or excluding. The act of ostracizing someone in the workplace has the same effect as exiting someone from the community. Shunning creates a loss of identity and belonging. Every employee needs to feel a sense of belonging. One of the reasons people work is to experience a connection to others, as a sense of purpose is required for each individual to feel whole as a person.
Withholding information. When information is required to do a job and the information is withheld, we are setting someone up for failure.
Intimidating a person. Intimidation comes in many forms, and all instil a sense of fear in the person being bullied, whether it be fear of losing one’s job, fear of humiliation, fear of being ostracized, or fear of reprimand. All of these forms of control constitute intimidation.
Removing areas of responsibility or promising projects and not following through. In particular when there is no reason or explanation. By taking away responsibility or not following through on a commitment to an employee, the employee looses trust, motivation and starts to question their own ability.
Deliberately sabotaging or impeding work performance. This can happen in many forms, by not giving information required to perform the job, by not providing adequate workspace to complete the job, not giving the authority required to complete the job etc. This sets the employee up for failure; the result is that the work fails, the individual fails, and the organization looks incompetent in the end.
Bullies choose their targets, timing, location, and approach carefully; they know the rules and how to break them. Left unaddressed a workplace bully can influence your rate of turnover, the general health of your workplace, the productivity of your staff, and poison the overall culture of your organization.
By establishing strict guidelines on workplace bullying and training your staff about the topic, you are able to minimize bullying behaviour and its consequences in your organization.
Source: Really Long Link
This is not related in any way to the theme of this blog. There will be no mention of music, up and coming artists, the latest underground band that's doing things differently or about my never ending quest for new material.
This is a rather serious post about something that I've had the unfortunate opportunity to experience myself. In Canada within our educational institutions there has been an important focus these last few years on the prevention of Bullying.
The impact of bullying on young kids is more than profound. It can lead to psychological problems, health problems, low self esteem, personality disorders and in some cases even suicide.
There are many strong campaigns being led to prevent this type of behaviour at many levels. It's encouraging to see that this topic is being integrated into the curiculum and victims of this behaviour and those that are witness to this behaviour are learning to recognize the signs and more importantly they are speaking out.
In many cases the person doing the bullying is suffering from abuse as well and this often leads to them becoming bullies.
The truth is that this behaviour is not limited to our schools and it is not limited to students. Bullying in the workplace is now taking up more and more space in the media. it's not that there has been an increase in this behaviour amongst adults, it is because people have become more aware that this behaviour is simply unacceptable.
It took me five years to realize what was happening and to finally do something about it. I was the first to speak out and when i did I found out that i was not only helping myself but many others who we're suffering the same way i was...... in silence.
I will leave you with a list of 15 signs of bullying in the workplace. If you recognize that any of these things ar happening to you please do something about it. Speak up, go to your union, go to your human resources department and file a complaint. Trust me, you will thank me for it!!
Fifteen signs of workplace bullying
Continually undervaluing effort. Recognition of effort is an important motivator for every employee. Without it, people tend to decrease effort, have little desire to be in to work on time, or perform their work to the best of their ability. By undervaluing an employee’s efforts, an exceptional employee can quickly become a problem employee.
Refusing to delegate. Delegation is a tool for getting more done in less time and for developing employees. When an employee is not given the opportunity to develop, they will certainly look for the opportunity elsewhere.
Frequently changing workplace rules. When the playing field is ever changing, how can the players play the game effectively? Changing the workplace guidelines on a regular basis sets employees up for failure, "keeps them on egg shells" because they never know what the "rules of the day" are. It also undermines trust amongst co-workers.
Public humiliation. Reprimanding an employee in a meeting or in the presence of other employees, yelling at or swearing at an employee, or rolling of the eyes when an employee or co-worker is expressing an opinion are all examples of humiliation.
Personal insults and name-calling. Whether in the presence of the individual or behind the individual’s back, this tends to alienate and lends to the forming of camps, further dividing your workforce.
Over-monitoring with malicious intent. Micromanaging with the intent of finding problems undermines the ability of an individual to do their job and do it well. Over time this approach can increase the mistakes a person makes. Micromanaging can make someone feel as though their every move is being monitored and judged. It can make them nervous and take their mind off of their work, increasing stress levels and developing into health issues.
Unfair applications of leave or promotion. This occurs when the rules for promotion are not applied consistently among the staff, when some have flexibility in scheduling, or some have the freedom to come and go as they please and others do not. When one individual is singled out and the rules of the workplace are not applied consistently it constitutes as bullying. This behaviour undermines trust, decreases motivation, and creates a negative attitude toward the supervisor and the organization. This will be reflected in the quality of work of the individual if the individual does not leave the organization first.
Instigating complaints from others to make an individual appear incompetent. Not all staff complaints are genuine issues. The challenge for the supervisor is defining the difference. A well versed bully is able to manipulate others into believing that the person being bullied is incompetent and will manipulate others into joining their camp in ostracizing the one being bullied by filing complaints that are unfounded.
Constant criticism. Feedback, whether positive or negative, is a useful tool for improvement, however some mistake criticism for feedback. Regular criticism that is judgemental in nature is destructive to the individual receiving it, undermines self confidence, impacts the spirit of the individual, and instils a sense of incompetence.
Spreading malicious rumours, gossip, or innuendo. Hard to catch, yet extremely destructive to the workplace, rumours are hurtful and demeaning; they pit staff against one another and undermine the ability to work as a team.
Ignoring or excluding. The act of ostracizing someone in the workplace has the same effect as exiting someone from the community. Shunning creates a loss of identity and belonging. Every employee needs to feel a sense of belonging. One of the reasons people work is to experience a connection to others, as a sense of purpose is required for each individual to feel whole as a person.
Withholding information. When information is required to do a job and the information is withheld, we are setting someone up for failure.
Intimidating a person. Intimidation comes in many forms, and all instil a sense of fear in the person being bullied, whether it be fear of losing one’s job, fear of humiliation, fear of being ostracized, or fear of reprimand. All of these forms of control constitute intimidation.
Removing areas of responsibility or promising projects and not following through. In particular when there is no reason or explanation. By taking away responsibility or not following through on a commitment to an employee, the employee looses trust, motivation and starts to question their own ability.
Deliberately sabotaging or impeding work performance. This can happen in many forms, by not giving information required to perform the job, by not providing adequate workspace to complete the job, not giving the authority required to complete the job etc. This sets the employee up for failure; the result is that the work fails, the individual fails, and the organization looks incompetent in the end.
Bullies choose their targets, timing, location, and approach carefully; they know the rules and how to break them. Left unaddressed a workplace bully can influence your rate of turnover, the general health of your workplace, the productivity of your staff, and poison the overall culture of your organization.
By establishing strict guidelines on workplace bullying and training your staff about the topic, you are able to minimize bullying behaviour and its consequences in your organization.
Source: Really Long Link
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Comment by Marc 7
on Blog the Future for Future Rewards
Feverr
The Spoon
For me I personally liked the look of the Hubpages website compared to Orble. it just seemed more professional. I guess looks can be deceiving.
It seems quite difficult to find real writng jobs online.