I was hearing the tale recently of a newly appointed CEO who started to put his hand out like a Policeman stopping the traffic to curtail discussion in his meetings. At first his colleagues thought it was a high five gesture but soon realised it was a way to control his team. They felt the cold air of a new culture and leadership style and the organisation is beginning to see raised staff turnover .

Psychologists refer to displaced aggression. It is prevalent in primates where dominant animals attack inferior animals and the inferior animal then attacks an even more inferior animal.

In organisations dominance can come through hierarchies, high technical knowledge, speed of working, personal confidence and impact etc. Bullying comes when people misuse their dominance to undermine others. Nobody admits to bullying – we rationalise it and  call it “being more hands on”, or” more directive”, or “sharpening performance”.

In times of challenge and pressure bullying inevitably increases as people at the top or technical specialists transfer their stresses to others. Ironically this is rarely productive - people under stress can perform wonderfully when encouraged and enabled. Under bullying the culture will only ever be compliant, proactivity and innovation will be stifled and the workplace will be constrained and joyless.

Some bullies are naturals - they always feel others are inferior to them and deserve to be treated with disrespect. Others can dip in and out of bullying. We allow our stress to tip over to others and become more aggressive, less tolerant, more demanding and - perhaps unconsciously we become the bullies. More bullying about? Almost certainly. In stressful times we need to monitor our stress to ensure our staff and colleagues don’t feel we are the new bullies on the block

Steve Botham

Caret Associate Tammy Tawadros considers the wider implications of stress on leadership and life in her latest article Manage Your Stress… Before it Manages You.

As business leaders we demand a lot from work but we often forget about what it demands of us. The impact of overreaching ourselves physically, emotionally and intellectually is huge, and is even greater if we fail to understand what is happening to us.

A timely piece of research from the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health adds a harsh perspective:  people who work 10 to 12 hours a day are almost 60% more likely to develop heart disease or have a heart attack than people who work less than 10 hours.

The study of over 6,000 British civil servants aged 39-61, with no history of heart problems, tracked the effects of long working hours on coronary health over an average of 11 years. Accounting for conventional risk factors such as smoking, excess weight, blood pressure and high cholesterol, the research revealed that the overtime group tended to be at the younger of the participants, were likely to be men rather than women and in a higher occupational grade.

The research suggested that working overtime could affect metabolism or mask depression, anxiety and cause sleeplessness - a major stress contributor. It also explored a phenomenon called “sickness presenteeism”, whereby employees who work overtime are likelier to work while ill, ignore symptoms and not seek medical health.

In contrast, job satisfaction has a significant impact on the effects of long working hours. Those who enjoy their jobs and have a degree of control over their decisions tend to work longer hours just for the pleasure, and generally have a lower rate of Coronary Heart Disease than their less satisfied counterparts. 

On that positive note I’ll leave the last words to Tammy:

It is the small realisations and sweet moments of reflection on genuine successes and achievements, on ‘what really matters’ in life and at work, that seem to ameliorate stress and build resilience.