LEADERSHIP INSIGHTS

Do some of your employees feel like they are in it?

“Why can’t the CNAs do anything to help me? I delegate tasks but they act insulted that I want them to help me. I don’t think they want to do anything!”

“What do the nurses around here actually do? I’m running ragged doing all the thankless jobs for the patient and they just sit at the nurse’s station on their phones.”

“We (nurses, pharmacists, lab tech, fill in the blank) are working harder than any other departments here!”

When empathy erodes, teamwork suffers. If your department has fallen into the blame game, it might be time to facilitate some dialogue. Sit people down together. Review the statements below and consider if any of them might be tenets that you need to establish, or expectations that you could clarify. Make your case, and then follow up with the facilitation questions and prompts for discussion to mend strained working relationships:

1. We are all on the same team: the patient team. This is not a trite, throw-away, statement. When we are busy, it’s easy to forget that we are all here to serve the patient and all of our jobs are important in making sure that the best care gets delivered. Ask: What are some of the things we appreciate about what everyone brings to the table?
2. Let’s do our best to assume positive intent with each other. None of us came to work today to make each other miserable. We came to do our best; remember that about each other.
   1. What are the situations that are most likely to cause frustration amongst our groups?
   2. How can we give each other some grace in these instances?
   3. What are some ways we can ask for what we need in a way that we can better be heard and not pass on our frustration?
3. Ask for what you need. Too often we assume that others should just know what we need without having to ask. But if you haven’t said it, how can others be responsible for knowing it? What kinds of things stop people from asking for what they need? How could we remove those barriers?
4. Work at not taking things personally. Maybe we don’t always have the same priorities, or we may rub each other the wrong way at times. Use the phrase, “The story I am telling myself about what you did/said is that you are not happy with me, or you don’t care, or you think I am lazy,” etc. “Is that true?” When these made-up stories are out in the open, you can work to resolve what the actual misunderstandings are about based on fact not fiction.
5. Look for solutions, not blame. When something goes wrong, it’s human nature to try to find the person to blame for it. But blame is not helpful. When something goes wrong, let our first response be, “How can this be fixed? What about our process needs to be revamped so this doesn’t happen again, or goes better next time?”
6. Look inward first. When we are at odds with each other, start by asking yourself what you are contributing to the situation. What do we each have control over when there is tension amongst us? Expecting other people to change is a recipe for stress. How we choose to show up is up to us.
7. Make a 100% commitment to not talking about each other to the other members of our work team. This is poison to a team, and it is disrespectful. If we slip, own up to it, apologize, and stop immediately. Can we get to a commitment that everyone will give this their very best effort? How will we address it if we hear it or slip and engage in it ourselves?
8. Commit to 100% NOT dumping our issues onto the manager. It’s ok to come to the manager to ask for coaching on how to approach something the right way with each other, but it is not ok to expect managers to solve relationship problems. Venting is essentially just gossip, so know that if you come to unload, you will be asked to take follow up action...
9. We have two choices when we are struggling: address it and fix it, or let it go and move on. There really is no other option that doesn’t result in misery.
10. Assumptions and judgments about each other are not helpful. It’s easy to find fault with others when we don’t really know everything that is involved in their jobs. This is especially true when we are under stress and busy. How can we begin to develop empathy with each other? Could you make possible the powerful experience of job shadowing other roles to learn what they do, even for a short period? An alternative activity: ask everyone to write down what they think the job duties are of a different role. Compare it to the actual job duties of that person to improve the understanding of the job expectations of others. It can be enlightening!

The responsibility for a positive, high-morale culture belongs to everyone. Sometimes a little map out of hell can be helpful.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

	In Jo Anne's current role as Organizational and Workforce Development Senior Manager at the Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative (RWHC) her aim is to offer to leaders straightforward tools and inspire the courage to use them.
	Lead the Way in Five Minutes A Day: Sparking High Performance in Yourself and Your Team, by Jo Anne Preston is currently available for purchase.