HR Professionals – Emotionally Fit Leaders with Carol Ross

Are Drama & Crisis the Norm in Your Organization?

Do you have an executive who is wreaking havoc in the workplace, with offensive comments, volatile outbursts or inappropriate behavior?
Are your best contributors at risk of leaving as a result of a toxic employee?
Do the same people keep showing up in your office, complaining about a “difficult” co-worker and expecting you to be “the parent”?

If any of these situations ring true, it’s likely you are spending an inordinate amount of time focused on damage control. One (or two or three) employees are draining your time, energy, and attention, keeping you from work that could be a whole lot more fulfilling. Sadly, managers are lacking the courage to put this type of employee on a performance improvement plan, partly because they truly don’t know what to do to help the person.

So the problem festers, day by day. The organization suffers in terms of lost productivity, disengagement, and a climate of fear.

The Good News

Drama in the workplace is a result of employees who don’t have the emotional fitness to be responsible with their emotions. Usually, the person is aware that he has self-sabotaging patterns of thought, feeling, and behavior, but has no clue what to do about it. Some part of him is desperate to break out of these old patterns, but is lacking the tools and skills.

I can help.

Emotional fitness can be developed.
You don’t have to be born with it.

An Emotional Fitness Case Study

When I started working with “Mary”, she was a high performing individual contributor, with a track record of taking on industry leadership positions in her technical domain. And yet, she was seen by internal colleagues as difficult to work with and temperamental. Mary was used to getting agreement with co-workers through coercion rather than influence, which created distance and distrust. When things didn’t go her way, she often blamed others, rather than take ownership. She also lacked confidence to take on bigger roles.

Read the rest of the Mary's story

After 1:1 coaching with Mary to develop emotional fitness, she now manages her “triggers”. By authentically taking ownership of past problems with colleagues, she creates trust with her co-workers. Rather than reaching for control and coercion when interacting with her teammates, she seeks to understand and influence. Mary gained the confidence to step into a leadership role that requires her to facilitate and connect disparate parties. She is seen as a technical pioneer, both inside and outside of her company, and a key collaborator with her peers.

Mary is just one of many I have helped become more trustworthy, with themselves and others. Like so many others, Mary benefitted from seeing clearly where she was out of integrity, taking ownership, and embracing emotions to create change.

Client Testimonial

Emotions were demystified for the first time in my life. Emotions are not good or bad. There are not preferred emotions or unsightly emotions to cram into the closet so no one can see them. Emotions are not inferior to logic (this was an interesting lesson!) Emotions are, quite simply, a necessary part of our human experience.

I was able to feel a wider range of emotions. Even better, I was able to accurately name and describe my emotions and then see emotions as valuable input. Emotions don't need to make the decisions, they don't need to be scary or avoided. They are simply good data, provided you have a way to detect, respond, and reframe the information provided. If you are looking to become adept at managing the emotional part of your humanity, this work is for you!

Lisa Schwaller, Software Implementation Manager

What would it be like to increase retention, create a more engaging and productive work environment, and return to a sense of calm?

Find out by contacting me.

Let's Talk. I'm ready for a drama-free workplace!