Take a minute to think back to your childhood and early career to the teachers and the bosses who had the most influence on your life, and think of the leaders you respected and wanted to follow.
Were they positive or negative individuals?
My guess is that almost all of them were positive people or their positive interactions with you are what you remember.
Positivity has a way of etching itself into the minds of others, and its powerful effect is backed up by research.
Dr. Barbara Fredrickson explored the idea of positivity in leadership and its direct and powerful impact upon creativity and performance.
Called the Losada Ratio, she discovered high functioning teams demonstrate a 3:1 ratio of positive to negative interactions.
How do you become more positive in your office?
Dr. Fredrickson suggests focusing on these leadership characteristics:
• Be Open
• Be Appreciative
• Be Curious
• Be Kind
• Be Real–no false pretenses of positivity
Use this as a quick mental checklist to assess your interactions with your agents and staff.
If you’re a Negative Nellie, your agents may find somewhere else to hangout.
