Attitude is Infectious

Is there any man who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go back to his house, lest he make the heart of his fellows melt like his own. Deuteronomy 20:8

I’ve never really spent a lot of time thinking about the culture at my workplace. That is, I’ve never spent a lot of time thinking about it until I felt like it was my responsibility. For most of my career, I’ve tried to avoid leadership roles, preferring to be the physician who provided medical care, not the physician who led others in providing medical care. In putting my career back together after the disaster of my addiction however, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to be a medical director for my company’s correctional (jail medicine) program. So, for nearly the last year, I’ve spent a lot more time thinking about workplace culture and I’ve had to accept that every day, my attitude matters.

This, of course, was true even prior to becoming medical director. Unfortunately, I’ve not always wielded my influence in a manner that builds a healthy culture. I have, after seeing a difficult patient, come out of the exam room with a toxic attitude of condescension, derision, and indifference. I’ve gossiped to and about people with whom I work. At times, I’ve been unkind in my interactions with those same people. I’ve noticed that my poisonous attitude affects others, and I’ve noticed that their poisonous attitude affects me.

This is the lesson of today’s passage. In it, as the Israelites prepared to enter the promised land, they knew they were going to face military opposition. God told them not to fear, but if anyone did fear, he was to turn around and go home, lest his trepidation contaminate those around him. Good or bad, attitude is infectious.

We’ve all worked in toxic environments, and we’ve all worked with those who make an environment toxic. No one purposefully creates a toxic workplace culture. That’s simply what happens when we don’t purposefully build a healthy culture. We may not realize it, but every day, we affect the culture around us with our words, actions, and even the expression on our faces. A toxic culture takes little effort and is miserable. A healthy culture takes a lot of purposeful effort but is its own reward. Whether we see ourselves in a position of leadership or not, we’re all responsible for the culture around us.

Today then, and every day, I must ask myself what kind of culture I’m building. If I’m careless, I can easily encourage resentment, callousness, and negativity. Or, if I choose, I can encourage compassion, integrity, and respect. For better or worse, my attitude is infectious and the affect it has is my responsibility.