Mangaging Emotions

 A huge part of a person’s identity and general make-up is their emotions and how they handle them. As I mentioned before, organizations are comprised of diverse personalities and that includes a wide range of emotional behavior. People’s emotions can get in the way of productivity because feelings can hurt, conflicts can arise and people can be silenced due to fear or spite. Emotions are what also keep us in check. They can keep us honest, ethical, or sympathetic to others. Emotions are often irrational because you can’t help how you feel. It is a sense that you get and there is no guarantee that extended thought and reason will change that. However, recognizing your emotions and managing your emotional intelligence is the key to open discussion and honest communication. Emotional feelings are different for everyone but they exist in everyone. Therefore, effective communication involves knowing your own emotions and understanding the emotions of those around you.

Hansen & Weis (2008) believe that in order for an organization to get the most from its workforce, they “need(s) to have authentic, differentiated individuals showing up as themselves – telling truths, saying what they mean, facilitating open communication, and implementing authentic data flow”. This alludes to having an identity and being comfortable expressing it in the workplace. However, this authentic self can only be brought out through self-awareness of emotional intelligence. Hanson & Weis go on to describe the “opposing forces” we face as individuals every day of having our own thoughts, beliefs, and feelings (conviction); and being connected socially to the people around us (connection) (2008). Finding the balance between your convictions and your connections is the essence of emotional intelligence. It is the constant task of being both separate as an individual and cooperative as a member of a group. This cannot be done without having a handle on your own emotions while recognizing the emotions of those around you.

References
Hanson, L. & Weis, W. (2008). The use of training groups (T-Groups) in raising self and social awareness and enhancing emotionally intelligent behaviors. Allied Academic International Conference. Academy of Organizational Culture, Communications and Conflict. Proceedings. Retrieved April 27, 2009, from Proquest Database.

Sefl-Awareness vs. Self-Confidence

I talk a lot in this blog about knowing your identity. Self-awareness is an important and dominant human characteristic to me because it is the essence of all of our thoughts and actions. Being self-aware is what enables us to have confidence in ourselves and also to doubt ourselves. If you ever want to develop yourself and your identity into an ideal state it takes self-confidence. The kicker, as Cathy McCullough writes, “is that we rarely gain it (self-confidence) when things are going at a steady pace” (2007). Essentially, we cannot gain confidence in ourselves without first failing along the way. Life is full of ups and downs and when we err is when we learn the most about ourselves and our surroundings. Self-confidence is not just the feeling we have when we know that we can succeed; it is also the feeling we have when we know that we will survive any mistakes we make. From my perspective, keeping things the way they are for fear of failure will stunt any growth you wish to make.

References
McCullough, C. (2007, December). Developing YOU! T + D 61(12), 64-65,67. Retrieved April 27, 2009, from Proquest Database.

Matching Personal Identity with Organizational Identity

In terms of core beliefs, values, and other descriptions of a person’s character; it is important for an individual’s identity to match with their organization's identity. This is the case because part of working within in an organization is taking on their beliefs and practices. If a company does business in an unethical way, then you will be part of an unethical identity and there is a chance you will also take part in unethical acts. If this conflicts with your own identity, then you may experience an identity crisis. The more you act in a way different from your own perceived character, the lower your self-worth will become. This is because you are not living up to the identity you see yourself as. As your self-worth or self-esteem lowers, communication may as well. You may begin to resent your job or the other workers there and your job performance may slip as a result. Ethics are always a “hot-button” topic but more subtle identity differences could just as easily affect a person. For instance, if your identity values being heard and part of the decision making process and you work in company with a very autocratic leadership; then you will face a similar identity crisis.

I had an experience where my personal identity clashed with the organization I was working for. One summer I worked in a telemarketing office attempting to solicit sales appointments for a home meat delivery company. I had a feeling going in that I would not like the company’s business practices but I just needed a summer job. A huge part of my identity is respecting other people’s privacy and their rights to be left alone. Quickly the job began to drain me because I would get yelled at for not keeping people on the line longer and pestering them into an appointment. My job performance was not good at all because I did not believe in what I was doing. It would be one thing if I even believed in the product, but I kept hearing countless stories about how much of a scam the actual service was. I already hated bothering people that did not ask for it and then I certainly did not feel comfortable essentially lying to them about how great the product was. I did not last long at the job because I eventually quit. I was having an identity crisis and I was scared that if I continued to work there long enough my self-worth would just continue to drop.

The lessons I learned from my short stint in the telemarketing business have shaped the way I sought after jobs since and will continue to in the future. I have a high opinion of myself and the core beliefs, attitudes, etc. that make up my identity. It is not so much that I need to show others the strength of my character; rather I need to prove it to myself. I am my own worst critic and I am the one that has to live with myself day to day, minute by minute. If I feel that I am not living up to the identity in my personal or professional life, I am the one that gives the constant reminder. In terms of maintaining a high self-esteem and a high self-worth, I need to partake in actions that fall in line with the standards of my identity. I am not perfect by any stretch but I live with the shame of my mistakes everyday just as I live with the satisfaction of my triumphs.

The Individual in Organizations

Organizations are composed of a vast amount of individuals all working towards the greater success of the business. People (employees) are a company’s best resource. From people, an organization gets ideas, establishes a company culture and basically gets work done. The people working for companies lend a huge hand in creating and maintaining an overall organizational identity.

In order for businesses to thrive and make use of their greatest resource, they must first have good communication from within. The larger an organization gets, the more moving parts become involved and the more communication it takes for everyone to be striving towards the same overall goals. The challenge for good organizational communication is managing the diversity of the people involved. That is not to say the color of a person’s skin or their gender; rather the diversity of people in general. We do not all think alike or express ourselves in the same manner. People at different levels of their lives may have different perspectives, or wisdom, gained from experience. People may have been raised differently than others and have different communication expectations or emotions when it comes to dealing with the people around them. Regardless of the numerous differences that divide people under one large organizational umbrella, the key to communication starts with the individual. Each person needs to have (know) their own identity within a business and have control over their emotions to be an effective communicator. In order to know the people around you, you must first know yourself.