Best Strategies to Curb Office Gossip
It is common for employees in many industries to spend time chatting with colleagues during the working day, often discussing personal issues.
Communication can improve co-worker relationships, improve collaboration efforts, and improve job satisfaction, but negative gossip damages the work environment.
What is Office Gossip?
It is informal communication about colleagues, coworkers, or supervisors that happens at work. In most cases, gossip involves personal or private information.
If you share personal information about yourself with colleagues or supervisors, that's simply considered sharing, but if you repeat what someone else has said, that's gossip.
Colleagues can share positive or negative information about a third party, regardless of whether gossip has a negative connotation. In most cases, gossip has nothing to do with current work activities.
The Best Ways to Limit Workplace Gossip
1. Put in place a 'zero-tolerance' policy for workplace gossip
Information that is sensitive to a company is usually protected from leaking to third parties by many companies.
Managers may face disciplinary action or even termination if they disclose confidential information which leads to workplace gossip about employees.
2. Lead by example
Rather than engaging in gossip, be a positive role model for others. Avoid gossip by walking away, changing the subject, or being assertive. It sends the message that you will not tolerate the behavior.
3. Take action against the perpetrators
Speak directly with the lead perpetrators in a neutral and more private room or office so that others cannot hear your conversation.
You do not want to pummel your colleague, but rather demonstrate with specific examples how his or her behavior is disrupting your work.
4. Meet with your team if you're a manager
To educate your team on gossip's negative consequences, bring up the topic in a staff meeting.
Bottom Line
People are emotionally engrossed in the drama at work, which decreases their productivity. You must prevent office gossip to reduce tension and anxiety and increase productivity.