Leaders set the tone for the conversations at work. How do you deal with a bully at work? Kathlynn Stone, co-anchor for Good Day VA, interviews Lynda McNutt Foster, CEO of Cortex Leadership Consulting, about what leaders need to do raise conversational intelligence at work.
Transcript
Kathlynn: So as almost everyone knows, the mudslinging that took place during the presidential campaign, well, it did not end after Election Day. There have been plenty of people on both sides of the isle, on social media, at school and in the workplace who allege harassment from people who don’t see eye to eye with one another after last week’s election. And today in Virginia, we’re discussing the reality of a hostile work environment and the cost of workplace discrimination. Of course we’re joined by Lynda McNutt Foster, the CEO of Cortex Leadership Consulting. Thank you so much for joining us. So, last week we discussed an amygdala hijacking. I think you were pretty on point, don’t you think?
Lynda: Yeah, there’s been a few of those, where people have kind of lost their mind on both sides. And they feel ok, I think right now, to say at work what they’re saying outside of work or social media, and there’s big ramifications from doing that.
Kathlynn: So what do people need to know, what do they need to do to kind of stop this bullying, to kind of get the talk to go away?
Lynda: Yeah. One of the things they need to do is it needs to start with leadership. The CEO of Grubhub, not the way to do it. I don’t think you want to editorialize as a leader anything that’s going on. I think what’s most important is that you state what’s acceptable and what’s not acceptable, and you create an environment where people feel safe to have conversations with one another. And there’s a place for them to be able to go to talk about their grievances if something has happened at work.
Kathlynn: Now, you went to New York City recently to speak with Judith Glaser, right? Becky interviewed the two of you and you guys discussed bullying, right?
Lynda: We did. Conversational intelligence is all about how do we build trust? You know there’s a process for building trust that for most of us is kind of unconscious. And so conversational intelligence teaches you how to make that conscious and what steps to take. So, we spent a lot of time with Judith Glaser in New York and recorded a 3 podcast, several interviews will be airing. So the people can learn how to build trust at work and actually what jeopardizes it. So what kinds of things can I say to you that are going to trigger your amygdala hijacking?
Kathlynn: And the kind of things that can really get you in trouble right?
Lynda: Right. Because corporations right now, leaders, they just need to understand how much it can cost them if people aren’t civil to one another at this time.
Kathlynn: And of course you’ll have the podcasts online right, at virginiafirst.com?
Lynda: Everything’s online; Becky did a great story last night too.
Kathlynn: Yes she did, she really did. That’s online as well. You can find it on virginiafirst.com under the Virginia work segment. Thank you so much Lynda.
Lynda: Thank you for having me.
