The Hindu Business Line : <I>Mood and workplace </I>

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has come out with a well-researched and interesting set of conclusions on the effect of moods of employees on their performance at workplaces. Of course, the connection between mood and work will be obvious to anyone observing the way an employee or a boss in a good or bad mood conducts him (her)self. In fact, in India, it is common for a colleague wanting to meet the boss to check up with the personal staff, "Saheb ka mizaz kaisa hai?" (In what mood is the boss?). If told that the boss is not in a good frame of mind, the colleague may even put the idea of meeting him on hold. The mood very often decides the nature of the outcome.

One of the significant findings of research is that the mood one brings to office at the start of the day, due to, say, a traffic jam or a quarrel with the spouse at home, or a nagging worry, has greater influence on his productivity that day than anything that may foul up the mood in the office later on in the course of the day.

How to calm the employees who are in a disturbed mood and, conversely, keep their mood buoyed to help them put in their best? They can be advised to take recourse to the traditional methods of counselling if it is a family situation or a financial problem; it may even be worthwhile for the employer to have arrangements in place for drawing upon counselling services for improving performance.

Since some are more prone to mood swings and emotional volatility than others, great patience and understanding is required in putting them back on the rails.

Some employees get tense when given a task, but this is a healthy trait not to be mistaken for a bad mood, although the outward signs such as irritability may be similar. Creative tension is actually indicative of the person's commitment to the job and his keenness to excel. This is what is behind the adoption of stretch targets (which induce tension) as a management tool.

B. S. RAGHAVAN

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