WHAT IS A NOT MY PROBLEM MENTALITY?

One of the very dangerous approaches to a teamwork is “Not My Problem” mentality and it is an opposite to a healthy team collaboration. It is not a team player’s mindset. It can endanger your team’s productivity, your relationships, the product, or, in the worst-case scenarios, even lives. It is easy to walk away from a car accident thinking that someone else is going to take care of the problem. It is easy to walk away from an upset colleague without asking if they need any help.

If the team lead recognizes the “Not My Problem” mentality in the team, they should discuss it at the team meetings with the whole team. Make a step-by-step procedure how to deal with a problem so everyone knows how to deal with it every time it occurs.

CONTRIBUTING FACTORS OF NOT MY PROBLEM MENTALITY

Disengagement: A feeling of a withdrawn. If you are not satisfied at work, why would you engage with other people’s problems?

Overwork: You simply cannot help anyone because you are overloaded with your own work. There is a very high risk of burnout and losing a valuable employee.

Unclear responsibilities: If the employees do not have a clearly defined roles, their work becomes less efficient, and the collaboration stagnates. “Not My Problem” mentality spreads.

Bad examples: If the senior leaders do not seem to go the extra mile, why should the employees bother. Bad example can trigger “Not My Problem” mentality very quickly.

No recognition: It does not have to be a huge pay rise but sometimes just a simple “good job” feels like the boss recognized your extra work. Feeling the appreciation encourages employees to walk the extra mile and be good team players.

Bad team leads: The team leads are not team players in the first place. If they cannot identify themselves with the team, they can spread the “Not My Problem” mentality. The team members’ problems should be their problems as well.

HOW TO DEAL WITH “IT’S NOT MY PROBLEM”

How many times have you heard “It’s not my problem” or “It’s not my job”?

They may just be defensive in nature, unwilling to take risks or want to avoid additional work. Regardless of their reason it is unlikely you will be able to argue them out of their negative attitude.

ONE COMPANY, ONE TEAM

To change these attitudes, you must change the culture. One of the best ways to do this is for leadership to implement the vision of one company, one team. This requires breaking down the walls that people and departments build around themselves.

People must understand they need to work together at all levels for their company to be successful. You can not have a world-class company or department with such negative cannot do attitudes. A unified mentality can tie employees together and create a sense of pride that nurtures an organization into a great workplace.

One company, one team should become the new mantra of your company starting with leadership and working down through every level. This type of mentality will lead to employees, teams and departments actively seeking proactive ways to drive value to the business and promote new levels of cooperation.

If we are truly one company and one team when any one of our team members are in trouble, we all are at risk. By replacing the negative and defensive culture of “It’s not my problem” and “It’s not my job” with a vision of cooperation and company wide teamwork, you create a culture of shared responsibility for the success of the company.

By nature, human beings are resistant to change. It will not be easy to change an entrenched culture of only looking out for yourself or your department. To take your company to the next level you must get rid of the culture that breeds a “It’s not my problem”, “It’s not my job” type of negative attitude.

TIPS FOR IMPROVING NEGATIVE ATTITUDE IN WORKERS

A problem can only be resolved if someone brings attention to it but if you do not plan to be constructive, keep your thoughts to yourself. If you, however, would like to be, known as a problem solver instead of a complainer, speak up. If you, do it the right way, you will make a positive change that could do a lot to improve your work environment. Things that will help you lose the negative attitude and bring about change are:

Don’t Try to Fix What Is Not Broken: We sometimes see problems where they do not exist. You may think there is a better way to do it but that does not mean your assessment is correct. Before you say something, take a moment to think about it. Ask yourself if your way is really better or is it just a different way of doing something.

Take Your Complaint Through the Proper Channels: If you complain to your coworkers, all you will do is spread negativity. Figure out who in your organization is the right person with whom to discuss your concerns. You want to pick someone who will be receptive to your ideas, but you must also make sure you do not go over anyone’s, for example, your boss’s, head.

Only Give Constructive Criticism: Anyone can complain. If you want to do more than that and really help affect change, you should have some ideas for how to solve the problems that are bothering you. Before you take your complaint to the right person, do your research so you can come up with possible solutions.

Pitch In: If you point out a problem and present a list of possible solutions, get ready to help implement them. This will demonstrate to your boss that you have a stake in making improvements that will benefit the company.

SAFETY IS A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE COMPANY AND WORKERS

Ownership of workplace safety is important, it signifies a shared responsibility, for everyone to embrace the same mindset – that it is not just the employer’s or the safety personnel’s job. With ownership, individuals are more likely to speak up when they see safety issues, report near misses and hazards, intervene when unsafe behaviours are observed by their co-workers. This shared responsibility cultivates a positive and proactive attitude towards safety at the workplace encouraging workers to take safety initiatives seriously.

FINAL WORD

You should want a safe workplace outside of your own good and interests for all involved. However, remembering that it does truly affect you and the company as a whole when something is not right will encourage you to own whatever the hazard is and see it through that it gets corrected.