MARCH 20-26, 2023 SPRINGFIELD BUSINESS JOURNAL · 21 Local municipal elections are just weeks away, and it’s got me reflecting on areas of divisiveness in our community that may be impacted by voters. The vice president of the Springfield Public Schools Board of Education was ousted from her position at the last board meeting. Two board seats are on the ballot, and the candidates represent a variety of viewpoints on governance. The last Springfield election’s heated vote over a proposed development in the Galloway Village neighborhood has launched the campaign of a challenger to the city’s three-term mayor. Disagreement over Springfield City Council’s use of eminent domain on the building that is home to a haunted attraction has some citizens looking to overturn the body’s vote and send the measure to voters at a future election. The at times competing interests of building and neighborhood preservation and development could continue to raise challenges with the next iteration of council. I am not remarking on the merit of these actions, but rather that within these challenges, dissent, argument and compromise are essential to healthy communities. But it appears in some instances, we’re not able or willing to argue well. I recently connected with Heather Walters on this topic. She’s a senior instructor in Missouri State University’s Communication Department and has taught about argumentation at the university for 23 years. She says some trace the increased feeling of division felt across the country to the 2016 presidential election between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. “The partisanship that exists in political circles has started filtering down into our communities a lot more,” Walters says. “People, more than they did several years ago, think that their political enemy must be their personal enemy.” She also says the prevalence of disinformation heightens disagreements. As someone in the business of facts, I too often hear and read passionate stances on local issues that have gotten the facts plain wrong. The echo chambers easily built on social media don’t do this any favors. We like to talk with people who agree with us, and sometimes that leads to building opinions on false or misinformed narratives. “When people are using their own agenda when they’re speaking to someone, they are really speaking more to persuade,” Walters says. When done well, arguing is a foundation to collaboration and is a tenet of a deliberative democracy, she says. It’s also a key element in developing business strategy and new products. Good business doesn’t stem from a team member sharing an idea and everyone else either wholly agreeing or beating it down. More information is shared when good questions are asked and points are challenged. That idea or strategy gets refined through the process. Arguing can have a negative connotation, but its most basic definition is giving reasons for or against something. Walters says arguing can go wrong when people use emotion and opinions over data and facts and are unwilling to truly listen to the other person. For the process to work, there are some rules of engagement. Here are Walters’ tips on arguing: 1. Recognize arguments are necessary. 2. Build relationships with others in the disagreement by finding common ground. 3. Be intentional and specific about what the argument is about. 4. Use data and research as much as you can. 5. Understand that arguments are not about control. 6. Argue positions, not people. Safety feels like another important factor in arguing well, as it requires an open mind and heart to consider new information. In some environments, that’s just not possible without a lot of work. I imagine in all of our workplaces we could find examples of how effective arguing improved relationships, processes and products. Disagreements will continue to arise in our community and in the daily course of business. For those of us willing, I hope we see the power and possibilities in learning to argue well. Springfield Business Journal Executive Editor Christine Temple can be reached at ctemple@sbj.net. 5 tips to stop complaining at work The case for learning to argue well Working my first summer job at 14 years old involved sorting pop bottles at grocers. I regularly complained to my boss about the cramped space of mechanical rooms and the abundance of broken glass – not to mention the spiders! On top of it all, I thought the sweltering heat was unbearable. When Larry, my boss who worked for the pop company, had heard enough of my complaints about the job, he told me something wise: “Stop complaining about the heat; you’re only focusing on how uncomfortable things are which makes you feel even worse, and it affects your work.” I initially resented his advice, but eventually I realized he was right. Complaining didn’t improve anything. There’s too much complaining these days. Some studies say the average person complains 15-30 times daily. If that’s accurate, that’s about once every 30 minutes – and one could say we’ve turned into a nation of complainers. We complain about the weather, the economy and politicians. We complain about work – grumbling about the pay, lack of information or how someone’s error caused us problems. We complain about shifting deadlines and difficult customers. Continual grumbling and complaining, though, can hurt us and our workplace. Recently, I was doing communications and customer service training at a company out of state. The CEO said employees and supervisors complained nonstop about other departments, team members and customers. And all the complaining was hurting communications, morale and customer service. As I sorted through the core problem, I realized their complaints were actually about the work itself, which involved continually working together. Since complaining will never solve the world of imperfect people and imperfect organizations, their complaints were mostly hollow and terribly damaging. Chronic complaining at work also can lead to dissatisfaction with your life. If you’re constantly unhappy at work, that unhappiness often will carry over into other areas of your life, leading to an overall sense of gloom. Enough with all the complaining. Here are five ways to minimize complaining about work and be more content with life: 1. Be grateful for what you have learned or can learn from the job. Lacking an attitude of gratitude blisters our vision to see the good things, which can hinder us from imagining and implementing solutions to real problems. If you aren’t staying long term, at the very least, look at what you can learn from the job and gain everything you can. 2. Look at the situation objectively. The managers and staff of my client mentioned earlier were able to figure out what was causing miscommunication problems by examining their situation objectively. Having a clear understanding of the problem, they discussed concrete ways to improve customer service and establish better habits among colleagues – ultimately boosting morale. By being objective, you can see your work more realistically and improve your attitude. 3. Take time to appreciate what you have. Acknowledging that there are tasks you’re not particularly thrilled with is natural, but actively identifying opportunities for personal growth within those tasks is vital for future success. You have tenfold better chances to find fulfillment in life and success in whatever you pursue if you replace complaining with appreciation. 4. Change “have to do” into “get to do.” Work becomes annoying when you see it as aggravating tasks that ruin your motivation: “I have to work for that boss” or “I’m always doing someone else’s work.” Instead say, “I get to work with my boss in this job” or “I get to learn tons.” 5. Leaders set the pace – so stop complaining and griping so much. In my experience, leaders can be some of the worst complainers in the organization. Leaders can help everyone’s mental state by fostering a positive work environment and motivating people to bring their best to work each day. To do that, all layers of management must be a positive example to employees with the right attitude toward work. The next time you are frustrated with a co-worker, your boss is driving you nuts or your customers are a pain to deal with and you’re moved to complain about work, think again. Consultant, professional speaker and author Mark Holmes is president of Springfield-based Consultant Board Inc. and MarkHolmesGroup.com. He can be reached at mark@markholmesgroup.com. BUSINESS SHIFTS Mark Holmes TRUTH BE TOLD Christine Temple OPINION WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU Springfield Business Journal welcomes responses from readers. Letters to the editor should be brief, preferably under 300 words, and may be edited for clarity, style and length. No anonymous letters will be printed. Send letters to sbj@sbj.net. Please include your full name and the city where you reside.
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