Avoiding Gossip Could Leave You More Focused on the JobWork at any place for even a short period of time and you are guaranteed to be exposed to gossip. It is unavoidable. Co-workers talk about each other, juniors talk about their bosses and bosses talk about the CEO. Justification; the information is just too juicy to keep quiet about!Let’s begin with a basic understanding of gossip. Gossip is simply discrediting talk about someone who is not present. There are several reasons that make people engage n this kind of talk of the workplace. What
reasons?An obvious one is to seek revenge on the co-worker we feel wronged by him/her and rather than directly confront or ridicule this person, we elect to malign him/her and to spread rumours about him/her behind his/her back.Second, gossip bonds the people who engage in it. Talking about a common enemy or problem tend to bring colleagues closer.And thirdly, gossip is intended at knocking someone down a few notches so that we may feel superior to the person. We try to enhance our image at the expense of someone else, and to many cases we do not consciously realize that this is why we are gossiping; bolstering our own image by denigrating the lives and actions of others.Negative gossip includes untruths accusations or taking credit for someone else’s idea and it harms people. Whether the harm is intentional or not, it can cause great hurt to both the victim and rumormongers’ reputation. No beating around the bush here, gossip is to be avoided.First draw a clear line between work and personal lives. Do not give detailed answers about income, sexuality, politics and relationships. It may be fun to talk about who is being forced to resign, who is sleeping with who, and who is next in line for promotion-but is this what you were hired for?Second if you become the subject of damaging gossip, confront it. Get to find the source of the gossip and privately seek to set the record straight. Ask the person to refrain from spreading rumors. They may deny it, but they will know they are caught and will stop.
Jul
20