Book 10: Build Around What Works

4. Limit or Remove Negative Comments

Using negative terms and phrases is one of the leading causes of poor performance and low employee morale. These harsh words can damage any employee relationship and can often bring out a sense of defensiveness when approached. When you find yourself wanting to use negative phrases, either with yourself or an employee, stop and think of the words you’re using. Then rethink the sentence by removing negative comments and replacing them with a positive one. You’ll find that you can still get your point across without making the employee feel as though they are being attacked.

Remove comments such as:

• “It’s too hard.”
• “I’ll/You’ll never finish this.”
• “It’s too late to change now.”