When you walk into your workplace whether it be the first day or you’ve been there for a couple months, when you walk up to people with the intent of starting a conversation, people will immediately start to notice your personality. In this blog post I will talk about the importance of a positive personality, and how it can affect you and others around you.
What is your personality?
You may be wondering what your personality is, and what strengths and weaknesses come with it. Your personality is a combination of characteristics and qualities to form an individual’s character. When you first meet someone, you will reflect their personality to them. You can find out your personality type and more online by taking the 16Personalities test at this link.
How is personality connected to your workplace and others around you?
You might start to wonder how your personality is connected to your workplace and your colleagues as well. It’s all about first impression and making a lasting impression. A positive first impression is great in earning trust and likability from your colleagues. The benefits of that positive first impression will pay off more as you go to work each day.
First impressions are not always positive however, and instead you may approach the situation with a more negative attitude. This may make the colleagues you meet with for the first time more anxious, scared, or unsafe. If you progress throughout your week, and are acting out negatively towards other colleagues, this could be considered an act of workplace violence. You can learn more about workplace violence on OSHA’s website or at this link:
You see that first impression is really that important. Having a positive personality will make better cohesive teams throughout and lessen workplace violence. Workplace violence is defined as any act and/or threat of physical violence, harassment, or any other form of disruptive behavior. This is an act that no employee would want to face.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), they say that that of the 5,333 fatal workplace injuries that occurred within the U.S., 761 of those cases were intentional injury by another person.
So, you have a basic understanding of the connection between your personality and the workplace. Let’s dive deeper into the outcomes of having a positive personality versus having a negative personality.
A positive step in the right direction
It’s your first day at a new job, and you’re excited about this new opportunity. You’re coming in with an open mind, and are ready for new learning experiences. Even more, you’re excited to meet your colleagues and the people you’ll be working with. You walk into your office and immediately greet everyone with a big smile, saying hello to everybody. When invited into a conversation, your positive personality immediately starts to show, your conversation goes smoothly, and you’re making a lasting first impression. Throughout the day, you notice that people are friendly towards you, and this makes your first time at work less intimidating or overwhelming.
How your positive personality and first impression can benefit you and others
As more days go on at your workplace, you are feeling great. Because of your positive outlook on different assignments and team projects, you find that people want to work with you more and have conversations with you as well. They may invite you to sit with them at lunch and may also ask you for advice. This will benefit both you and your colleagues as well. It will benefit you because you’re finding it a bit easier to go to work each day because you have colleagues who want to talk to you and work with you. It benefits your colleagues because they find you trustworthy, friendly, easy to work with, and more traits that you give off because of your positivity?
You may be wondering: how?
The answer to your question is just two words: positive personality. Yes, you heard that right. Your positive personality helped you succeed in making a lasting impression on your colleagues inside the workplace and your colleagues are now helping you by wanting to work with you more and conversing with you more. Congratulations!
It’s not all that easy
So far, I’ve made it sound easy for your first day at the workplace and beyond. However, it may not be. You nay feel overwhelmed on your first day at a new job and scared about meeting all these new people. Luckily, there are lots of different coping skills that can help you ease those overwhelming and angsty feelings. Some coping skills include:
- Identifying why you feel overwhelmed
- Stepping back and taking a break
- Breathing exercises
- Talking to somebody like a loved one
Coping skills can help a lot and make you feel more in control of the situation.
Summary
So, we’ve talked about a positive first impression and how it can make you feel more confident on the first day. Also, how it can benefit you in the long run. Colleagues as well benefit from your positivity. They may find you more approachable and want to work with you more. This will create cohesive teams and make you and your colleagues’ team efforts more rewarding.
A negative step back
You’ve got a job at a new company, and you’re walking in for your first day. You’re feeling overwhelmed and are not thinking about the new possibilities. You are fixed on this first day going bad.
As you walk in your colleagues try to greet you, but you brush them off and go straight to your office. You’re getting acclimated to your new office when someone knocks on your door. You get angry and yell at them. Later when you’re in the lunchroom, others try and come talk to you, but you get annoyed and flustered. Throughout the next couple weeks, your colleagues do not approach you and this makes it difficult to find a team for a project you need to do.
What went wrong? How is this affecting others?
You went in with that negativity already inside your head. You were focused on getting acclimated to your new office space and not trying to meet your colleagues. When they try and start a conversation, you yell at them.
This can make your colleague scared and she may tell others about their experience with you. This could affect you in the long run and only make you angrier. Colleagues will not want to talk with you and work with you. This will make you frustrated since you can’t get help from another colleague on an issue you are facing. When assigned a project, it may be harder to find a team that is willing to work with you. They’re scared that you might have another outburst towards them.
Workplace Violent Behavior
Your verbal aggression towards a colleague could be considered an act of workplace violence. An act like this can come with serious causes. Not just for you, but the colleague as well. Your colleague can be seriously impacted from your outburst like being unable to concentrate on their work. You can be fired on the spot because of the safety risk you present. Your negative first impression sets you up for later on consequences. For example, other employers could here about this past experience, and not want to hire you.
Who’s at fault?
It is ultimately you who is at fault. Your first day at the workplace was full of negativity. You made a lasting first impression that later gave you serious consequences. The importance of having a positive or calm attitude towards others on your first day is very important. Not only did your negative behaviors affect you, but it also affected others. Colleagues may get nervous around you if you have another outburst. Victims of your violent workplace behavior can be harshly impacted. They may feel stressed or unsafe in the workplace environment.
Conclusion
In this blog post, I talked about the benefits of a positive personality on the first day, and the consequences of going in with a negative attitude. The importance of positivity throughout the workplace is one of the many ways you can make others feel safe inside the workplace.
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