Negativity, gossip, and withholding information are poison. They generally start out as a small problem but eventually bring an organization to their knees.

I’ve seen it happen at another organization I was a part of. It started as a simple conversation on how the boss “should” run the organization differently. The boss saw the conversations but he “turned the other cheek”.

As time went on the comments got more and more harsh. The employee that started the conversation was trying to convince everyone in the office that the boss was doing it all wrong. Pretty soon, everyone in the office had loss confidence in the boss. They wouldn’t move forward with him. When he tried to lead they looked elsewhere. The “simple conversation” turned into a revolution… a boycott. They waited for their check each week but wouldn’t put the real effort into making a change. He had the passion but he didn’t have the team. The resentment started showing, even to customers. It quickly, and I mean quickly, fell apart. It crashed and it crashed hard.

This type of behavior is famous in marriages, friendships, and businesses. Girls have a horrible habit of gossiping and telling stories that shouldn’t be told. Often, you’ll see a wife run to her mother and “sell” her one-sided story about how horrible her husband is because he’s not coming home until 11pm. She forgets to tell her Mother that her credit card bill is twice the amount of income or the mortgage payment late for the second time. This brings rise to resentment. The mother from then on out hates the husband. The Mother convinces the entire family that the husband isn’t good enough for their princess.

High school girls tell everyone at the lunch table that Suzy slept with Johnny last night. And, the CFO tells the operations manager that sales keep getting the company involved in deals that aren’t profitable. All of these things amputate the integrity of the organization. I use “amputate” because it’s a part that you’ll never get back.

So, how do you deal with poison? You have to get rid of them. Remove them completely. As soon as you see someone who can’t be trusted, whose loyalty isn’t in line with your own, remove him or her. If you are the employee who thinks the boss is doing something wrong, bring it up in private. If you know this type of behavior is going on, notify management immediately. If you don’t screech, it may cost you’re your job and your employer everything he has built.

The point is, never publicly announce your problems. Keep them private.

PS… It’s not as easy when you’re married. If you’re married to “that” girl… Well… sorry.