Everyone has worked in or seen a toxic environment marked with disgruntled employees, poor customer service and everyone blames the boss.

How do you know if you’ve been creating or inherited a toxic workplace?

1.  The Boss is not intentionally building the right culture.  The core values of the organization or the group are not known and are not pursued.  Bosses are not recognizing and encouraging the best behaviors
2. Bosses don’t know their team.  Cannot articulate the value each team member brings to the team and they have no idea what is important to them.  They have squandered any relational capital built and the brand message is not being followed.
3.  The boss is not listening to their team.  They are not receptive to the team’s input and is not focused on continue improvement from those that know the most.

Warning signs to be aware of:

• You don’t want to go to work
• Employees coming in to work later and later
• Increased turnover of your staff
• Increasing number of time off requests
• Team and individual performance decreasing

Today’s Best Step:  Create one action step to undo any of the unintentional ways you are creating a toxic workplace.

1. Discuss core values each month, keep focusing on them, celebrate employees who demonstrate them.
2. Get to know your team.  Know their names, family members and what is important to them
3. Activate your active listening skills like listening for significance and reflecting.