Have you ever walked into a workplace and literally felt heaviness in the air? It was as though fear were the predominant emotion permeating the atmosphere. People only did what they were told, never showed initiative, avoided problems, and engaged in lots of finger pointing. Gossip was rampant and verbally bashing others and the company was a constant pastime.

This kind of workplace atmosphere does happen. Maybe your place of employment is not quite this severe, but I'm sure there's room for improvement. Learn how!

Who is Responsible?

Everyone is responsible for creating a great working environment. And everyone needs to know that, embrace the thought, and behave accordingly.

However, the management team carries more responsibility because of their elevated position, qualifications, competencies, and greater accountability for results. They are the success coaches working to help everyone overcome all negative impediments to effective and efficient production of services and goods.

What Can Management Do?

What can the management team do to create a positive working environment? Here are some techniques and tools executives, managers and supervisors can use:

- Adhere to and model high professional standards for yourself. Expect and communicate the same with and from all who work for you. Care enough to help your people uphold and meet these high standards.

- Learn about the psychology of negative gossip, finger pointing, and people bashing. You must effectively coach people in changing their attitudes (habit of thought).

- Become a master at holding people accountable for the effects of their interactions and behaviors. Your response either condones a negative atmosphere or it improves and grows it to a more positive state.

- Understand the differences in people and provide objective feedback that is effective in improving performance and effectiveness. Provide four times more positive feedback than feedback for improvement.

- Manage by walking around, know what is going on, and stopping negative talk and behaviors immediately. You are the guard that upholds company policy. I'll bet company policy doesn't condone creating or maintaining a negative working environment.

- Put chronic violators into a performance improvement training plan to meet the standards of positive interactions and behavior. If they don't meet standards, let them go. One bad apple can spoil the whole barrel!

- Be a life-long student of learning how to become an excellent supervisor, manager, and executive.

What Can Individuals Do?

- Become acutely aware that your choice of thought, talk, and behavior creates your working environment. You either help to create a positive and uplifting one, or one which is a "bear of a workplace". Which have you chosen? Be responsible for your choices and make changes necessary to create the best working environment possible.

- No matter what your education or perceived status in work and life, aspire to learn about all the techniques and tools that the management team is tasked with learning. They will help you!

The benefits of creating and maintaining a positive working environment are huge. Greater productivity, happier people, employee stability, business advantage, higher profits, greater security, and better health. Do you want these benefits? Then get busy on making the changes you need to make to create a positive working environment.