Stop Spreading Negativity — 3 Tips for Staying Positive at Work

The difference between a good day and a bad day can often come down to one thing: attitude. Learning to adapt a positive attitude in the work place can completely change the office environment for you and your peers. Negativity, like most bad things, seems to be contagious, so when you have a negative attitude, it can quickly bring the attitudes of others around you down with it. Having a negative attitude at work will prevent you from performing at the highest level possible. It might also cause your peers (and employers) to view you in a not-so-great light, preventing you from future collaborations, opportunities and maybe even promotions. Don’t let your negativity keep you from success. Training positivity can be easy if you follow these very simple tips.

Find positivity in the small things.

Unless you work in some sort of work utopia or fairytale land, things are bound to go wrong from time to time when you’re working. Far too often, we get caught up with all of the mistakes and errors that are made rather than focusing on all the good things that are happening around us. Take time to acknowledge and celebrate the things that are going well for you or your colleagues. Thank the people that help you achieve your goals. Demonstrate appreciation for your co-workers and bosses. When people feel appreciated, they are likely to keep acting in a similar way, and will probably start sharing more appreciation with you as well. A small thank you now and again can go a really long way.

Fake it ‘till you make it.

Even if you make a conscious choice to maintain a positive attitude, it’s not always going to be easy to maintain it. Some days, being positive will happen naturally, while others may be a big struggle. To combat the inevitable bad days, one of the best things to do is pretend to be positive. It seems silly, but sometimes that’s all it takes to prevent negativity from sweeping you off your feet. Faking your positivity is also great for the people around you. Negative attitudes spread like wild fire. A whole office full of negative attitudes will prevent productivity and will keep everyone from performing their best. So even on a day that it seems almost impossible to paint a smile on your face, make the effort to do it. Every office is a team, so keep the team’s well-being in mind and encourage positive behaviors amongst your peers.

Stop taking your work home.

One reason that negative attitudes permeate offices is that far too many people bring their work life home with them. The separation of work and personal life is the key to preventing work burn out and negativity on the job. Most people that work 24/7 grow a little resentful of their job, company or boss. Working longer hours doesn’t necessarily mean that you are producing more work and only will make you more unhappy and negative. Most people show some signs of exhaustion when they work all the time. Those signs will likely include lower quality work and a steady increase of resentment. To prevent that unfortunate exhaustion, put your best effort forward while you are at work, put in extra time when necessary, but in most cases, keep your work at work. Don’t let exhaustion lead to negativity.
Negativity doesn’t have be the center of your work life. Make a conscious effort to adapt and maintain a positive attitude at work, even when it seems impossible. A positive attitude can make a huge impact on your success in the work place, the success of those around you and your overall feelings towards your company. A positive attitude doesn’t always come naturally, but these few simple steps can guide you on the path towards achieving that positive attitude. Leave the negativity at the door and see what your new positive attitude will do for your happiness and for your career.

Andria is a content writer and career guidance expert for Minneapolis based company, Benchmark Learning. The company specializes in IT training, business training and career training center. Being in the training industry for more than 25 years has helped lead Benchmark to the top of the training industry.