You probably don’t think about it too much, but the day to day interactions you have with the people you work with shape both your and their experience of the working day. If you have a certain number of negative experiences compared to positive experiences, you might conclude that you’ve had a bad day. Then if you experienced the reverse, you would call it a good day. This ratio has a name; it is called the ‘magic ratio!’
It was coined back in the ’70s by Gottman and Levenson. They used a 5:1 positive to negative ratio to predict with a remarkable 94% accuracy whether 700 newlywed couples would stay together or divorce. Later, highly controversial work led by Fredrickson and Losada found that teams with a positive-negative ratio greater than 3:1 were more productive than workgroups that did not reach this ratio. Tom Rath even wrote a best selling book on this concept discussing the big impact of small interactions.
Improving Staff Morale
Faced with a daily barrage of difficult news, that is going to only become more intense over the coming weeks, what can we do to keep morale high? Now that most of us are working from home, what can we do to create more positive interactions? Here are some ideas to get you started. We have added links below to some free and discounted resources that you might find helpful.
A. Find Ways to Lighten the Mood
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Do let people off-load if they need to but limit the time on this. If you have someone who needs to talk about the virus or related issues in more depth, then schedule a separate meeting.
Don’t allow the Coronavirus to become the focus of your meetings or discussions when you are trying to get other work done.
Do what you can to keep yourself and everyone grounded by pointing out the facts of the situation instead of getting caught up in media hype or conspiracy theories.
Find the humour in your daily life. Each team will want to do this differently. For some, it might be teasing each other, others it might be sharing work-appropriate jokes or amusing stories about their children or pets
Do let people off-load if they need to but limit the time on this. If you have someone who needs to talk about the virus or related issues in more depth, then schedule a separate meeting.
B. Encourage Exercise and Wellbeing
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Remind everyone to keep exercising – youtube and our phones are bursting with videos/top apps. There is an app out there for everyone to keep you moving around.
Hold a virtual wellbeing session – Spa product suppliers, such as Temple Spa are getting themselves organised to offer virtual pamper sessions.
C. Keep Everyone Connected by Organising Virtual Social Events
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Host a quiz.
Run a virtual book club
Have pre-theatre drinks and watch some first-rate theatre together
Hold a virtual lunch get together
Hold a virtual coffee chat or pub get together
In response to these difficult times, I’ve made available two coaching hours a week to support two Leaders and their teams facing crises at no cost. Contact me on a first-come, first-served basis if you are interested.
LINKS TO FREE AND DISCOUNTED RESOURCES
National Theatre are streaming free full-length plays every Thursday. One Man, Two Guvnors, streamed last Thursday was a real mood booster. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUDq1XzCY0NIOYVJvEMQjqw
A streaming service of a selection of Broadway’s best shows are offering 7 days for free, and $8.99 per month. https://www.broadwayhd.com/
Some free resources to get you and your people fit.
https://www.verywellfit.com/free-workouts-during-coronavirus-outbreak-where-to-stream-and-subscribe-4800421
An online platform to help you create a virtual book club with tips on how to run one.
https://bookclubz.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwybD0BRDyARIsACyS8mspBqW5zMiXzAfTO8Pw1EvyumM3yeywMR–cwIoBuEA2PQGxnK7cUYaAr6IEALw_wcB
Jennie Marie at Temple Spa is currently offering virtual pamper sessions for a nominal fee.
www.templespa.com/jenniemarieglover
References
- SAGE Journals. 2020. Implications Of Debunking The “Critical Positivity Ratio” For Humanistic Psychology: Introduction To Special Issue – Harris L. Friedman, Nicholas J. L. Brown, 2018. [online] Available at: < https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0022167818762227 > [Accessed 8 April 2020]
- Psychology Today. 2020. Humor | Psychology Today UK. [online] Available at: <https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/basics/humor> [Accessed 8 April 2020].
- Wood, C., 2020. In These Dark Times, Embracing Laughter Is An Ethical Choice | Charlotte Wood. [online] the Guardian. Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/aug/19/in-these-dark-times-embracing-laughter-is-an-ethical-choice> [Accessed 8 April 2020].
- Masters, J. and Yarkin-Levin, K., 2013. Boundary Areas In Social And Developmental Psychology. Academic Press.
- Kim, H., Capaldi, D. and Crosby, L., 2007. Generalizability of Gottman and Colleagues Affective Process Models of Couples Relationship Outcomes. Journal of Marriage and Family, 69(1), pp.55-72.
Take a look at our Collab-Lab Collaborators Half-Day Workshop
Do your people need to work with others better to achieve better performance and or productivity, either face to face or virtually?