Fear and Paranoia in the Workplace – Good and Bad
The other day I was instant messaging with one of my childhood friends and we landed on the topic of jobs. He’s good at what he does and has worked up to be a Director of Marketing at a major media company, yet he stated that that he was “completely paranoid that he wouldn’t be employable in 10 years” and that’s why he works harder than anyone at his company to ensure that this doesn’t happen.
I actually think this is a great frame of mind, if not taken too far. A little bit of self-inflicted fear and paranoia is a great motivator, and looking both over your shoulder and forward allows you to stay ahead of the pack. A bit of “I’m not/won’t be good enough” can motivate one to work harder and smarter to improve areas where he’s lacking.
But what I don’t condone is the use of fear and paranoia by managers and executives with their subordinates. It creates an unenjoyable workplace where employees become afraid to mess up with fear that they’ll suffer harsh consequences. I came across this article about how Scott Pioli, GM of the Kansas City Chiefs, created a culture of fear, paranoia, and secrecy to the point where Chiefs employees were worried about their phones being tapped. Check it out, it’s an interesting read.
I’m all for accountability, attention to detail, and integrity, but I think there are better ways to foster that culture. You can still be very results-oriented without scaring it into your employees. If you choose to use fear, chances are you won’t get the results you want. Just look at the Chiefs.
The only thing with employers using Fear-based tactics, is that it ensures “mediocrity”…someone will work just hard enough to stay out of trouble [or the line of fire]. And yet, more heavily weighing within the minds of “employees” are the pervasive underlying thoughts of generalized fear. Another bi-product of this environment is “Ass-kissing”…the ass-kissers will display themselves clearly in order to [hopefully] avoid being a target. The entire concept creates paranoia and backstabbing…for the sake of self-preservation [basic instincts]. And, everyone is all too often consumed with keeping track of what everyone else is doing [or not doing].
Great points, Craig. It just breeds a culture of hatred and anxiety that diminishes productivity.
Thanks for reading!
nice one, mike. good thing SOPA died because i am pretty sure you don’t have copyright approval for that cartoon. ha!
We’re watching you….