Solutions for a Toxic Workplace

By Colleen Gray Director of the Centre of Effective Therapy Cairns and Ways Forward

All workplaces have the potential to be satisfying environments where individuals enjoy going to work, apply their skills and knowledge, achieve outcomes, make a difference and continue to learn and develop their professional aspirations.

In a world where the combination of downsizing trends, working smarter and technological change has placed enormous pressure on managements and workers to maintain levels of service and productivity, the term toxic workplace has been coined to describe work environments which are unhealthy to work in. How to negotiate and survive them is becoming an increasing challenge for many.

So what makes a workplace toxic? Toxic workplaces are a mismatch between the values espoused in mission statements, theories of managing and motivating staff and the way some individuals are treated in certain workplace environments.

The characteristics of these workplaces feature some or all of the following factors:

• distrust of management and work colleagues
• a mood of cynicism
• resignation that nothing will change
• interpersonal relationships based on competition and resentment
• individuals engaging in gossip
• communications featuring cordial hypocrisy
• individuals feeling they are not being valued
• the perception or reality that rewards are given regardless of an individual’s efforts.

Finding different ways of surviving and thriving in toxic workplaces is an immense challenge. It is time to name the demon and to ‘out’ the discussions, so that the secret of toxic workplaces is transparent to all, and allowed to become a discussable and more resolvable issue.

The shame and confusion which individuals experience maintains the secrecy, as many struggle in isolation to deal with the impacts. Some find it difficult to believe that the situation is really happening to them or understand why. If you are caught up in the cycle of trying harder to make the situation better and stressful reactions, you are not alone.

This timely discussion is intended to raise awareness about toxic workplaces, rather than provide an exhaustive expose of the subject. Recently I participated in a Tele-workshop on toxic workplaces through the Newfield Network, which featured a discussion on a book by Richard Barrett called Liberating the Corporate Soul.

In this book Richard Barrett describes some fundamental questions and concerns that humans within organisations seek in order to feel fulfilled and satisfied.

From the core concerns of our spiritual, mental, emotional and physical domains, he says we we ask the questions of:

• How can I serve?
• Am I making a difference?
• Is what I do here meaningful?
• Who am I? why am I here?
• Am I respected and appreciated?
• Is my job secure?
• Can I trust these people to be my friends?
• Will I be treated fairly and justly?

In a toxic workplace the predominant mood of fear and oppression makes no allowance for these concerns to be addressed. Individual’s desires for meaning and making a difference are ignored and replaced by an emphasis on management’s demands and expectations to perform at the required level.

So what to do?

In my professional practice I see many clients who describe these conditions in their workplace. I have learnt to pay attention to the specific issues that commonly arise for them, and appreciate that I am always working with a person, never a victim. There is no one theory that works for everybody, rather it is important to find the theory that fits the individual in the situation they are facing.

It is important not to collude with the idea that they are a victim of the events they are experiencing. This reinforces a view that they are hopeless victims, and negates their confidence to reconnect with the resources that have allowed them to survive this far or coped with other situations in the past.

By listening to their story, the facts become clearer, and it may be the first safe opportunity for them to acknowledge that this situation is really happening to them. Of course there are no guarantees they will succeed, but hope with actions that are well founded are a more useful way to negotiate the future.

What is missing?

It is important to identify what is missing for them to be able to handle the situation more appropriately or confidently. I like to start the conversation by enquiring about what they enjoy or value about their work, and pay close attention to what their concerns at this time are. This then allows the question of ‘what is missing for you in this situation?’ to be asked. Getting to the heart of the real concern allows the conversation to focus on what is important for them, to identify possibilities for future action that they are prepared to make.

If they identify a concern about not feeling respected, being insecure in the job, or not trusting the people in the workplace, we now have a place to start the conversations about ways and means to discover what is missing for them to be respected, feel more secure or be able to trust prudently. It is important to ask the right questions to help them arrive at the answers and solutions that are right for them.

Strategic solution oriented conversations are respectful and effective ways which assist and encourage individuals to identify what they can do and change.

A recent client I was working with reported feeling more and more left out of the decision making processes in her workplace and her assessment was that nobody valued her ideas or listened to her. She had stopped interacting in meetings, withdrawn from interacting with her work colleagues and was feeling more and more isolated after hearing work place gossip about her inadequacies. She assessed that she was a victim of a toxic workplace and after being overlooked for an important promotion, sought my help.

She wasn’t sure what was really happening, and the criticism from her work colleagues had hurt her deeply. Her concern was that she didn’t know how to make the situation better and couldn’t cope any longer.

What was missing for her was the ability to speak confidently in a meeting so she could make a good impression and be valued for her input.

In the coaching conversation she identified how some of her reactions and actions had not been helpful, and aspects she was prepared to change. She wanted to improve her confidence and manage her fears. This opened up the subject of how she would rather be, how she would sit, what she would focus on and what she wanted to achieve.

She determined to be more aware of her body posture as a way of communicating more confidently. She would start sitting at the front of meetings, sit upright, and listen more attentively to what was being said. Although she was nervous, she decided to make immediate changes and breathe her way through the meeting she was due to attend that day.

At our next session, she remarked how sitting up straighter improved her listening, and she sometimes forgot she lacked confidence. Over time she continued to make changes. She knew she was on the right track when her work colleagues reacted differently to her. She continued to be satisfied with her progress, and eventually left to take up another position.

Know When Enough is Enough

This example doesn’t apply to every situation. Each work environment is different, and not all situations are able to be resolved. Most individuals face a toxic situation somewhere in their careers and the experience provides some valuable lessons for those who are able to learn them.

It is important to know when the effort to stay in the job and attempt changes is worth it. To arrive at this decision individuals usually raise the concerns of, ‘did I do the best I could do?’, and ‘is there anything else I could have done differently’. Once they answer these concerns and realise that nothing is missing, that they have done all that anyone could humanly do, they are able to be more peaceful about making the decision to leave.

Professional coaching and employee assistance services are valuable adjuncts to support individual through these challenges.

I welcome your comments and views, and hope that this discussion has been useful in some way.