The 2020 election has caused divisions in our society—and likely in your own team. In a recent poll, 47% of employees say the election is impacting their ability to get work done. As a leader, it’s your job to build a bridge and restore trust and tolerance among your team members. In her November 2 “Let’s Get Growing” video, Bobbie LaPorte shares three science-based actions you can take to support your team and get everyone to refocus on your shared values and goals.
Video Transcript: Special Edition – Election 2020
Hi everyone, Bobbie LaPorte here again with this week’s “Let’s Get Growing” tip…where I help you take charge of your plans and accelerate your initiatives as you head into the end of this year.
This week I produced a special edition of this weekly vlog. I’ve been reflecting on the election and how it has created more division and polarization in our country about what is right vs. wrong, and I’m not just talking about political parties here. We are definitely in a time when we are more likely to classify people into in groups or out groups. We have more of an emotional and physiological reaction to people if they are “in “ or “out”, more contempt based on our perspective. This extreme divide impacts our ability to show empathy, to see what we have in common vs. our differences.
So, what does this mean to you? What can you, as a leader, do about this?
If you are familiar with my work you know I rely heavily on science-based practices to help leaders navigate challenging times, so I wanted to offer some tips to help you build a bridge over these divides and restore trust and tolerance in your organization.
First – a couple of points to consider. Since the pandemic began, we have all been in a heightened state of anxiety and personal threat. Our people are dealing with cognitive overload; they are taxed emotionally and have no personal resources left to deal with another emotional factor like the election.
What’s the potential impact on your team? Gartner Group recently conducted a survey related to this and found:
- 36% of people are avoiding their co-workers because of politics
- -47% say the election is impacting their ability to get work done
So, what can you do? Your role as a leader is to be THE BINDING ENERGY that helps people navigate through the next few weeks.
So, here’s my guidance for you:
There are three science-based actions you can take to support your team:
- Label the emotion: you can’t make people’s anxiety, fear, anger go away, but just be asking them to share how they are feeling – name it to tame it – you are activating the brain’s braking system and allowing them to use the limited cognitive resources they have on other things
- Restate – clearly – the value of your organization. This very important action gives people purpose and meaning they need in this time
- Focus on the shared goals of your team. You’ve heard me say this before. Be specific, help them see how they can build on their prior success and together achieve more. Doing this creates certainty in an environment of unrelenting uncertainty and activates the part of the brain responsible for inspiration, creativity and problem-solving.
That’s my special “Get Growing” tip for this week. I know these are very difficult times; I hope this guidance was helpful. I’d love to hear from you on how these suggestions work with your team.
I’ll see you next Monday… remember to see this time as an enabler, not a liability or a time to “pause”, waiting for certainty to return.
Take care of yourself!