Workplace Tip: Don’t bad mouth or speak poorly of others.
Workplace Tip: Don’t bad mouth or speak poorly of others.
This applies whether it’s someone who works for you, a peer, or a higher level manager. See, if you speak poorly of someone who works for you, other people who work for you will think you must do the same to them when they’re not around. If it is someone at the same level as you, a peer, then again, they will think that you do that to them too.
There’s a phenomenon that you need to be aware of and if you know it, great, if you don’t, learn it, because it does exist and it certainly affects your workplace success. It is: When you speak poorly about a person to someone else, the “someone else” will process what you say about that person as if you are talking about them.
For example, if you speak poorly about a current subordinate while interviewing a job candidate, the candidate will think that if they are hired, you will do the same to them. Undoubtedly, they will be less interested in working for you. And remember, you want to be viewed as someone others want to work for.
Likewise, if you’re a candidate for a position and during the interview you speak poorly about any of your past bosses, the interviewer will think that if they hired you, you will do the same to them. Undoubtedly, they will be less interested in hiring you. And remember, you want to be viewed as someone others want working for them.
I’ll agree that sometimes others may have earned the poor reputation that you are now preaching, but your listener doesn’t always know that. They will conclude that if you speak poorly about others, then you will most likely speak poorly about them also.
Is this always fair? Well, probably not. But it is the conclusion that’s drawn. And like it or not, most of the time, it is true. So be careful about what you say about others. If some criticism slips out, follow it up immediately with something more supportive. Balance any negative statements with positive ones that outweigh the negative, always more good than bad. Because the same effect happens when you speak kindly of others, think about it.