Be a positive influencer for a positive team culture

All of us are more influential than we think we are. In whatever we say or do, it leaves an impact on the people around us and the environment we live in, may it be in a positive or negative way.

When it comes to “wind of negativity”, would you choose to be a “fan” or an “air purifier”? Are you aware that you have a choice to be an “air purifier” or a “fan” ? An air purifier filters out the polluted air and released out better quality air, while a fan just blows the same air back to the surrounding environment.

Why is it important to be a positive influencer at work?

If a positive team culture is what you want to be part of, you need to believe that it starts with YOU and if everybody thinks like you or influenced by you, the reality of having a positive team culture can be easily achieved.

Here are the 10 ways to be a positive influencer at work.

1) Start with a grateful attitude As you can’t really have a bad day with a good attitude, start your day by being grateful and thankful for what you have and making an active decision to make it another good day. Express your thankful appreciation to anyone you meet who does anything nice or kind to you or help you in anything at all.

2) Spread your positive energy Bear in mind that any feelings and comments you expressed to others, it will somehow affect the listeners’ mood and way of thinking. If you were to spread something, why not spread your happiness and optimism. Happiness is contagious. Have you ever had a conversation with a happy and energetic person, did you feel that you become happier afterwards too?

3) A smiley face is better than a grumpy face Smile to those around you and even yourself too. When you are stressed, try smiling and you will immediately feel better about any challenges that you are facing. Being in a grumpy mood and carrying a grumpy face doesn’t solve problems and it won’t make anyone you meet feel any happier. People with positive attributes carry a positive charisma that lead them to have more positive relationships in their personal and work life.

4) Practice good manners Always say “Please…”, and “Thank You”. Good manners are a key to better relationship, and this should not only be practiced at the workplace, it should apply to wherever you go.

5) Be kind to everyone Hold the belief that deep down everyone is kind and if you are kind to everyone around you, you will be able to experience the kinder side of other people too. Kindness usually works like a magnet and that explains why kind people have more friends.

6) Be a “positive politician” or not at all To have a positive team, everyone should focus their energy on solving any problems together and avoid creating office politics and gossiping. Complaining about the problems around the office or criticising coworkers’ flaws will not solve any problems. The intended purpose of the communication determines whether a negative comment is a constructive feedback or simply words of political criticism. If the intention is to address the issues to solve the problem together then it is a constructive feedback but if it is just about venting out on the negative emotion behind someone’s back, then it is office politics / gossiping. If you can’t beat them, then join them as a “Positive Politician” by saying positive things from a more understanding perspective of the situation or the person being mentioned, and lead them back to a more meaningful objective by asking “How can we solve this issue together?”.

7) Always do your best People will respect and appreciate you if they can feel that you are doing your best for everyone. The only way to be happy at work is to love what you do. The only way to love what you do is to do your best. When you do your best, you will be able to do a great job. When you are able to do a great job, you will love what you do as it gives you a high sense of job satisfaction and accomplishment and when you love what you do, you will be happy at work.

8) Be honest and diplomatic Most of the problems occur when people do not communicate with each other enough and what worse is when they actually do have an unspoken expectation on each other. Open and honest communication is the key to any healthy relationship. Being honest is good but being diplomatic could be even better but make sure you are truthful and clear about the message you want to get it across and be sensitive on how you deliver it. You are responsible to how the other party will feel, especially when handling negative or sensitive matters, be mindful about your word choice.

9) Be considerate and thoughtful Most of the times, what we give out is what we get. Be considerate and thoughtful in anything we do, the do’s and don’ts list that we want or don’t want others to do, we should be practicing the same thing too.

10) Be respectful Everyone deserves respect as a person, regardless of their age, occupation, position, seniority, nationality, and race. If you talk to an office cleaner, a junior colleague, a subordinate with no respect, you won’t get any respect from them too. Respect is something you earn by giving it away.

Happiness is the in the mind of the beholder. A positive mind will lead you to a positive life.