Let hope be just as contagious as fear

Just coming off a religious holiday, I am recalling the sermon given by the priest. He noticed a billboard that said, "Fear is Contagious. So is Hope!" It was a coincidence because I had passed the same billboard off the highway and I began to think about how applicable it is to concepts of leadership and the workplace.

We are bombarded with news that focuses on ISIS, global warming, Ebola, immigrant invasions, and just about anything else that will scare you "out of your wits." And that saying can't be truer because when fear grips your soul, it interferes with the ability to think clearly and reasonably.

Fear and hope are both motivators, but fear tends to be more powerful, especially when given a powerful voice. I had an employee tell me that he just got a gun permit because he needs to protect his children from the immigrant invasion. I asked him if he had witnessed any signs at work or in his community that would indicate this to be true. He only repeated what he had heard on the news and that he needs to protect his children. Fear repeated many times is as contagious as Ebola.

It's easy to scare people today, especially with our access to 24/7 news on radio, television, social media and in print.

Fear is easier to believe because people who are afraid want to protect what they know, what they currently have, and sometimes the fear taps into a bad experience in the past.

Fear is used as a tool to get short-term results:

When leadership threatens a reduction in force due to declining revenues.

When a victim of sexual harassment is threatened with retaliation.

When a company is suddenly purchased and employees are told their performance will determine who stays and who goes.

We rarely see anything these days that is hopeful and we are all starving for inspiration...