The Art of Positive Spin and Perspectives in the Workplace

When you listen to a news story, you are aware that often the information has a “spin” or an angle that the producers of that story want to promote. They frame the story with a certain context that directs your focus toward the desired perception, attitude, or viewpoint they want you to adopt.

Taking spin one step further, when PR agencies want to shape public perception in a way that benefits their clients, they frame the story in a way that draws attention away from the negative facts and emphasizes the positive facts of what their client does.

Applying these principles to you as an individual in your daily conversations with colleagues, team members, and leaders, you can reframe or spin reality to emphasize the positive and de-emphasize the negative while maintaining the integrity of the truth.

In the corporate world, spin becomes reframing. Reframing is a powerful technique that can transform challenges into opportunities, obstacles into stepping-stones and setbacks into growth catalysts. Reframing requires a mental and emotional shift that is not about denying the reality of the difficult situation but changing the perspective.

By altering the perspective, emotional and behavioral responses are altered. This cognitive behavioral therapy technique is akin to looking at a picture in different frames at the frame shop. The picture remains the same, but the frame changes how you see it, how it feels, and how it will look on your wall.

Reframing difficult issues helps employees with different perspectives find common ground, decreases the emotional stress felt by team members, and helps them discover a possible silver lining.

Take the example of a project deadline was missed because a key team member was out sick. There is noticeable frustration among team members. The initial, human response when informing management is to blame the medical problems of the absent team member, leading to a demotivated team and potentially unfair blame.

A reframe of the situation can shift the dialog and perspectives toward learning, understanding, and resilience. To reframe this situation, team members must:

1-???? Separate themselves from the emotions caused by this negative event.

2-??? Challenge the accuracy of their initial perceptions of the situation.

3-??? Look for a learning opportunity in the missed deadline.

Once these three steps are taken, the team can move from blame to understanding and ask if there are alternative explanations for what happened. A discussion could focus on these points:

• Given this missed deadline, what can we learn from this?
• How can we adjust our processes to provide contingency plans?
• Can we have a backup plan B and even a C plan if our initial plan A for delivery goes awry?
• How can we improve our communication to ensure we are better prepared next time?

By reframing the situation, the conversation moves from assigning blame and dwelling on the negative to understanding, collaboration, and growth. This approach not only addresses the immediate issue in a constructive manner but also strengthens the team's resilience, encourages open communication, and fosters a positive work culture.

Reframing doesn't ignore problems but rather approaches them in a way that emphasizes learning and development, making it an invaluable tool for improving workplace conversations and outcomes.

A final reframe or spin by the team could be “Despite missing the deadline, our team worked hard. We had several bonding moments. We will take what we learned and improve our planning skills to meet our obligations on the next project so we meet the deadline and stay within the budget.”

What challenge have you had in the last week? How can you spin it or reframe it?

About Karla

Karla Brandau is the author of How to Earn the Gift of Discretionary Effort, a 21st century leadership book. She is a thought leader on how to create a culture in your organization that enables employees to give discretionary effort on a regular basis.

She is the CEO of Brandau Power Institute, a management consulting firm with expertise in the DISC 4-quadrant personality assessment, emotional intelligence, strengthening the touch points between managers and employees, and increasing the productivity of work teams.

Her clients include corporations such as Coca-Cola Enterprises, Cox Enterprises, Arauco, and Panasonic as well government agencies including the EPA, NIH, and the FDA. ?

She is a keynote speaker and a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), an earned designation given by National Speakers Association. Other designations she has earned are Certified Facilitator and Registered Corporate Coach.

Cell: 770-329-1806 | Office: 770-923-0883

[email protected] | www.KarlaBrandau.com