Radio, TV, social media, websites, conversations; Covid19 is all-encompassing.
From our bubbles, we see hardship, despair and death.
It is easy to get overwhelmed and let the devastation become the only thing we see and communicate about.
As leaders, we need to be mindful of how much of this we are focusing-on when communicating with our teams.
- Are most of your communications about Covid19 rules and regulations?
- Is the language within your communications negative, scaremongering or overly emotive?
- What mindset do you engender when you begin and manage your online meetings?
- To what extent are you communicating what is going well versus the challenges?
In 2005 psychologists Marcial Losada and Barbara Fredrickson researched the exact ratio of positive to negative emotions which distinguishes “flourishing” people from “languishing” people. This resulted in the creation of the Losada line, also known as the Critical Positivity Ratio.
For a team to flourish, it needs a ratio of around 6 positive to 1 negative emotion. That means the good jujus need to far out-weigh the negative.
This doesn’t mean we bury our heads in the sand and pretend things are all rosy. It does however mean that we communicate mindfully.
How often are you:
- Celebrating what’s going well?
- Acknowledging the work people are doing?
- Acknowledging the qualities people are showing?
- Sharing examples of exciting or positive ways people are facing challenges.
- Having a laugh?
Now is a vitally important time to keep energy and thinking above the line.
How we communicate as leaders is key to our teams emotional wellbeing.
This week I encourage you to have a mindfulness around your positivity ratio when communicating.
Go well
MA 🙂
