It’s a Haunted House Out There

The weather is cooling off here in the mountains and as my social media channels fill with the aroma of #PumpkinSpice and pictures of #SweaterWeather my mind is not on the bright, colorful changes that fall brings- but instead on my favorite spooky holiday. Halloween. In just over 20 days, we celebrate the best time of year. A time full of ghosts, goblins, vampires, zombies, far too much candy, scary movies, and yes- haunted houses.  

Now, you may be thinking “where the heck is this going?” but friends let me ask you this, how many of you have found yourself working in the corporate equivalent of a haunted house? I’m not talking about an office with one too many spiderwebs. I’m talking about places haunted by the ghosts of good-spirits-gone-bad, spooky dwellings that reflect back in scary detail the flaws and obsessions of those trapped within its walls, and most aptly perhaps places riddled and ruled by the guilt of past misdeeds (however well-intentioned).

There are some themes and monsters that appear throughout Halloween and haunted houses in literature and pop culture that, unfortunately, ring all too true when applied to the modern workplace. I’m here to talk through some of them and equip you - my lucky few readers - with the necessary monster fighting, paranormal repelling, and haunted house surviving toolkit. So grab your flashlight, proton pack, garlic bulb, zombie fighting machete, and join me.

The Vampire

So my oldest daughter wants to dress up as a vampire for Halloween this year, one of those classic undead, pale, beings that feed on the blood of its victims (as romanticized by the literary likes of John Polidori and Bram Stoker). This classic vampire drains life from its, sometimes unwitting but often seduced and compliant, victims. Workplace vampires similarly feed on the energy, accomplishments, and optimism of their colleagues. I’m not talking about someone who may be disengaged and low energy. I’m talking about those individuals that actively sabotage others. They drain a conversation and relationship of strength by minimizing accomplishments and maximizing concern. Nothing ever works and everything is always wrong. I’m assuming most of you reading this right now can think of at least one person that you know like this. Like the classic literary vampires, they can spread the disease easily, especially to those easily seduced victims who are quickly lured down the dark alleyways of gossip, dismay, and disorder.

Vampire Hunting

Ok, how the heck do we vanquish the workplace vampire? It’s tough, I’m not going to lie. I myself have been sucked dry of energy and optimism by a workplace vampire - left feeling defeated and deflated. In the movies, you see the vampire hunter carrying garlic to ward off vampires, and while the stench of garlic may keep these monsters at bay- garlic isn’t going to rid your office of these bloodsuckers. For that, you need pure sunlight.

Get these vampires involved and engaged, show them the light of active participation. I don’t mean Pollyanna optimism - I mean solutions, positive, move-us-forward-not-back engagement. I know that sucks (pun intended) and it may feel hard but the best way to vanquish a vampire is to involve them. Surround these vampires with individuals that can redirect their negativity, not allow it. Have them actively involved in training, initiatives, and (eventually - once their bloodsucking days are over) onboarding. Let them express concerns, but don’t enable this negativity. Don’t let them sit in an echo-chamber of all the bad that’s going on, it will fuel their inner fire. And don’t let others follow them down the dark alleyways of discontent. Say, “that’s great feedback Karen, how are we going change things going forward?” The solution is to keep others from joining them in their dark corners because without a food source they can’t survive and most importantly they can’t spread their monster-y ways.

However, if you have those vampires that can’t join you in the light, if they continue to persuade others to partake in their vampiric ways, or worse yet if your vampires are in positions of power and authority… that’s when you call for reinforcement. That’s when you need Van Helsing- be it your internal HR team, another leader, or even an outside consultant - don’t go it alone. Reach out, get help, and whatever you do- DON’T WALK DOWN THOSE DARK ALLEYWAYS ALONE!

Frankenstein’s Monster

Hang on folks, this one is deep. If you, like me, had to read Mary Shelley’s famous 1818 novel for AP Lit, then you probably remember a couple of disturbing facts about the plot of Frankenstein. First of all, Victor Frankenstein builds the creature in his laboratory over a two-year period only to be so terrified of what he himself created that he flees and leaves the creature to wander alone through the wilderness. Secondly, Frankenstein’s nameless creation is not initially violent but becomes violent after everyone around him treats him with cruelty, rejection, and disgust. And finally- it doesn’t end well for either Victor or the monster. It’s a sad, sad, depressing novel. Which isn’t shocking when you read more about Mary Shelley’s own life, which was also a rather bleak and depressing story.

Here’s my parallel to the corporate workspace, because I see Victor Frankensteins and Frankenstein's monsters in droves running around today’s office spaces. Think of those leaders and organizations who have (sure, unintentionally) taken pieces of incredible, high-performing, high-achieving individuals, but after years of stitching and course correcting and redefining what they want and need realize that what they have is not what they intended. And then out of despair and disbelief, they reject those very employees that they promoted or hired or mentored. That rejection and that cruelty stings, and those super emotional, once bright, employees become violent creations bent on revenge. I see it happen time and time again. And it never ends well for either party.

Avoiding the Lab

Honestly, once a Frankenstein monster is created it is neigh impossible to stop. And it will come for you and your loved ones. So my survival tip for this one is- leaders I implore you to lead with empathy, kindness, and compassion. If your employees are struggling, do not resort to fear and rejection. Engage with them in empathetic and compassionate conversations. You may learn that they are trying to do what you asked them to do, but the directions are unclear or the need is confusing. If you meet them with abandonment or disgust, they will become what you fear most. You’ve been warned.

Up Next… Ghosts!

So, turns out there are lots of different types of ghosts (not that I Googled it or anything….). And because I think ghosts in organizations could be their own book entirely, I’m going to save my deep dive on the different ghosts that haunt our organization for next week’s blog. So stay tuned for a couple of sightings that may send shivers down your spine!

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