Turn Complaints into Gold - April 2008
Tell Me Your Complaints and I'll Help You Turn Them into Gold
Complaints you say. Who wants to hear complaints? I do because I will help you turn them into something positive.
When a client tells me a complaint they have about their work, I encourage them to reframe it by turning it into positive goals. I was sick in the month of January for a couple of weeks with a bad cold and flu bug. It gave me some time to read several books about transformational leadership practices. I have had the opportunity to work on some of these practices myself and work with some of my clients regarding them as well.
What deeper, expansive commitment under the complaint do they want to have happen? They are complaining because a piece of them is committed to something more positive. Looking at the deeper commitment is a lot more positive than complaining. I find complaining to be negative and life draining. If we are complaining we are usually stuck in a rut.
After defining the positive commitment the work just begins because goals need to be established regarding the deeper commitment. It is work because my clients or I wouldn't be complaining if it was easily attainable.
The work requires commitment and energy toward a goal that is wanted and desired. The work turns into gold with time. The work helps us move, get unstuck and make progress. The work is positive, expansive and energizing.
The corporate culture can be a culture of complaint if we let it or it can be a culture of movement and growth where we are working responsibly on what we are really committed to. Let's work at making it the latter.
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Tue February 07, 2012