The effect of an individual to an organisation rests under the individual’s control. You have the power to impact your organisation positively or negatively. It is your call. You may argue that there are many aspects within the organisation that you cannot control. However, you can control your behaviours. Functioning congruently is a good starting point.
Thinking that you, as an individual, can have an effect on your organisation is not common. Over the years of working with employees across the organisation, I have concluded that many, if not most people give up their power.
What do I mean by this?
Well, most people tend to be laid back when it comes to the effect that they may have. They seem to believe that their voice or behaviour goes unnoticed. There is little appreciation for the fact that they CAN have a meaningful impact.
In this article, we will explore five (5) ways to know the effect you may be bringing to your organisation.
1. How You Behave
This should not require too many explanations. How you behave at work matters. It matters A LOT.
If you turn up for work and your behaviours are negative, unsupportive, inflexible, unwilling, dissatisfied or unhappy, your co-workers will not be attracted to you. They will not want to work with you and you may find it difficult to achieve your results and get ahead.
The organisation and the people you work with do not owe you anything. When you accept your employment contract and show up every day, you commit to getting the work that you are being paid to do completed. Negative behaviours and a bad attitude hurt the process and the outcome.
Positive behaviours and an attractive attitude make all the difference. People like to work with and support people who are caring and engaging.
More than ever, emotional intelligence and soft skills matter. Make sure that your behaviour is congruent.
2. How You Communicate
This is a big one for me.
Your behaviour directly impacts how you communicate – with your peers, Direct Reports, Managers and clients or customers.
Ineffective communication is a reflection of how you behave. Learning to be assertive in situations and listening actively are “soft” skills that can help you to earn an admirable reputation.
Yes, I know, we all have good days and bad days BUT is your internal or external customer, that is not my business. You will make it my business IF you communicate with me poorly.
As a member of your organisation, you are a Brand Ambassador. You will be described as “. . . the person who works at company x . . .” We identify people based on where they work and what they do more often than we pay attention to.
3. How You Make Decisions
Most of us make decisions when we are emotionally wired. This results in poor decision-making.
Let me share a situation I had to intervene in this week.
A high-performing Manager, with a solid track record of delivering results, called me at 11:23 AM, this week Tuesday. He, (and I note, ‘He’), was rather upset that his Direct Manager had sent him a strong email about an error he made the previous week. It caused his Business Unit to lose $5,000.00 in revenue.
That resulted in the Business Unit missing its second-quarter revenue target by 0.518%
He was upset because he felt that his Direct Manager was overreacting and being “unfair” to him. As far as he was concerned, he was “a consistent performer who never missed a target“.
The result of this was the Manager making a decision to resign. He had drafted a resignation letter and he wanted me to “have a look at it“.
I did not. I made the decision to facilitate a coaching session instead.
After our twenty-three (23) minute session, he was deflated and looking at the situation dispassionately. He agreed that taking such action, after building a 12-year bank of respect and credibility in the organisation would be self-sabotage.
He instead, moved to the decision that he would speak with his Direct Manager, apologise for the error and ask simply:
“What can I learn from this mistake and do differently?”
Guess what?
His Direct Manager commended him for his action and behaviours in handling the situation. He subsequently wrote to the Financial Controller and requested an override of the 0.482% difference, with the understanding that it will be realised in the third (3rd) quarter of the year.
Everyone won.
4. How You Support Team Efforts
By now, you should realise that there is a flow. Each point should connect to the ones that came before. This connection may help you to see ahead to what comes next.
Your behaviour impacts how you communicate. This directly impacts the quality and effectiveness of the decisions you make. The outcome of your decisions has a direct effect on your relationships and team efforts.
- Do these connections make sense to you?
- Can you see the flow of progression?
- Who wants to experience unsupportive behaviour, ineffective communication and weak decision-making in their team?
These experiences tend to weaken a team, create conflict and divide rather than engage and connect. When you are supporting a team and team efforts, you want your contributions and involvement to add value to the collective outcomes.
A team is a group of individuals working together to achieve results that are greater than a single outcome. This is the powerful effect of an individual to an organisation.
5. How Trustworthy You Are
People do not trust what you say. They trust what you DO.
We have gone way past the old way of “Don’t do as I do, do as I say.” That no longer holds any water. The expectation today is that you will be authentic, and genuine, with your words and follow through with actions that are aligned.
This makes you worthy of the trust of others – trustworthy.
When people trust you, it is easier for you to recover when a mistake is made. It is easier for others to believe you and forgive you.
You earn trust over time. As your trust bank fills up, you will have credits. No one is perfect and from time to time you will have to make a withdrawal. When you do, you will still have some savings left to earn additional dividends. This will help you to recover quickly and move forward stronger.
You cannot withdraw if your bank account is empty.
Closing Thoughts . . .
This article helps you to answer the question: “What Is The Effect Of An Individual To An Organization?” Too often, I hear individuals saying that they do not matter to their organisation.
You do matter and your efforts have a direct impact on your co-workers, department, division and organisation. Think of an organisation as a living system, made up of individuals who are connected by one common goal.
That goal is to achieve the results that will ensure success, profit and sustainability.
If each individual keeps that in mind and places their attention and actions appropriately, the effects will be remarkable. Everyone will achieve success and this collective success can only impact the organisation in a meaningful and positive way.
Change Your Script
In 2020, LaMP International Limited launched a global campaign titled “Change Your Script“. Our purpose is simple. To help individuals understand that they held the power to change their lives and lifestyles.
Too many of us allow others to control our destiny and our goals. This results in emptiness, mindlessness and lost direction. We drift through life not ever being aware of what true possibilities exist for us. Instead, we become aimless followers, accepting whatever comes our way.
To Change Your Script you can begin slowly with a single step. Something as simple as drinking one more glass of water each day.
Changing your life does not have to be complex or drawn out. The longest journey begins with a single step forward.
Start today.
Let us know how we can support you, even if it means simply listening.
About The Author
Cassandra is a Management Consultant, Internationally qualified Facilitator, Coach, Strategist and Behaviour Change Agent. She enjoys travelling, exploring cultures and learning about historical and social networks and dynamics.
Her driving force is the education and development of her tween daughter. The roots of her inspiration to diversify her niche markets and the motivation to expand and scale her business investments rest firmly in this relationship.
This is the reason for her legacy.