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Segment 8: Don't Gossip or Complain

Objectives

Students will:

  1. Define what gossip is.
  2. Understand the importance of avoiding gossiping or complaining about co-workers.
  3. Understand why employees who gossip or complain about co-workers are a problem for any organization.
  4. Understand why employees who gossip or complain about co-workers cannot expect to hold a job for long.
  5. Understand why co-workers don't want to work with employees who gossip or complain about them.
  6. Identify negative consequences of gossiping or complaining about co-workers.
  7. Identify personal benefits of avoiding gossiping or complaining about co-workers.
  8. Identify behaviors that accompany gossiping or complaining about co-workers.
  9. Identify behaviors that accompany avoiding gossiping or complaining about co-workers.
  10. Model successfully avoiding gossiping or complaining about co-workers.

Step 1: Lesson Introduction

Last time, we found out why it's important not to be too personal with co-workers. We learned that if you invade their personal space, touch them, or ask personal questions, you're going to irritate co-workers, create problems for the organization and probably not hold a job for long. There are other ways to irritate co-workers besides being too personal. One of these ways is by gossiping or complaining about them. Ask students what gossip is. Ask them to discuss instances when they have been around someone who gossiped or said bad things about a friend of theirs. How did this make them feel about being around the person? If they were the person being gossiped about, how would they feel about the person spreading the gossip? If that person were a co-worker, would they want to work with him/her again? Tell students that in today's video, we're going to see how you can irritate co-workers by gossiping or complaining about them to other co-workers.

鈻讹笍 Show the video.

鈴革笍 Stop the video when the "Pause for Discussion" title appears on the screen.

Step 2: Guided Discussion, Part 1

What did the employees do that was not smart?

They gossiped about their co-worker and said bad things about her. They laughed about the weird guy she was in love with and about how she got fired from her last job. After she overheard them, they didn't feel bad at all. They said if she was sad, that was her problem.

What happened because the employees were not smart?

They irritated their co-worker and hurt her feelings. She said she would never eat lunch with either of them again. She stomped away nearly in tears. She felt terrible not only because of the bad things they said about her. But she was mad they were talking behind her back instead of telling her how they felt to her face. Now she won't be able to trust them again.

Why was the employees' behavior a problem for the organization?

The way Debbie feels, it will be hard for her to work with Justin and Leah again. She may look for ways to get back at them for hurting her. She may say bad things about them to other co-workers or to the boss. All of these things could create problems for their work team, for the boss and for the company. We may not like some co-workers or what they do in their personal lives. But while we're at work we all have to work together as a team. We have to respect everyone on the team and what they contribute. When we gossip or complain about co-workers, especially behind their backs, we make it hard to work together and we show that we don't respect them. We may get some immediate satisfaction by making ourselves feel good by putting down a co-worker. But this is not only immature; it shows we're not good team players. And employees who aren't good team players don't last long in any job.

How could the employees have been JobSmart?

Have students discuss how the employees could have been JobSmart in the same situation. Then tell students to watch the next part of the video to see one way the employees could have been JobSmart.

鈻讹笍 Start the video again.

鈴革笍 Stop the video when the "Pause for Discussion" title appears on the screen.

Step 3: Guided Discussion, Part 2

How were the employees JobSmart this time?

They said good things about Debbie and the contributions she was making to the team. When she joined them for their break, they greeted her with smiles and friendly voices. They all liked and respected each other and were comfortable with each other.

What happened because they were JobSmart?

They and Debbie will go back to work feeling good about each other. They will be able to work smoothly and efficiently together as a team. Debbie will want to keep working with Justin and Leah. They showed that they are mature employees and good team players by focusing on what they like and respect about their co-workers, not what they don't like about them. These are the exact qualities that employers want in an employee. Both employees have a bright future with this company.

Step 4: Activities

  1. Invite employers from the community to discuss:
    • Why employees who gossip or complain about co-workers are a problem for any organization
    • Why employees who gossip or complain about co-workers cannot expect to hold a job for long
    • Instances of problems that have resulted because employees gossiped or complained about co-workers
    • Instances when they have reprimanded or terminated employees who gossiped or complained about co-workers
    • How employees who avoid gossiping are valuable to an organization
    • Instances when they have praised or promoted employees who said good things about co-workers instead of gossiping.
  2. Have students roleplay situations where someone they know gossips about a friend. Have students practice telling the gossip that they don't like gossiping, then remind the gossip of the positive qualities of the friend being gossiped about.
  3. Have students make up work situations where employees are gossiping about a co-worker. Have them roleplay these situations. Have students discuss how they feel after taking part in the gossip. Have students also say how they would feel as the person being gossiped about. Would they want to work again with someone who gossips about them?
  4. Have students repeat the above roleplays. But this time assign a student to refuse to join the gossiping and to remind the gossip of the good qualities of the person they are gossiping about. Afterwards, have students explain how they would feel if they were the person being gossiped about and a co-worker stood up for them like that. Would they want to work with this co-worker again?
  5. Have students discuss TV shows (especially soap operas) or movies where people gossip. Have students roleplay these situations. Then have them repeat the roleplay, this time refusing to join the gossiping and reminding the gossip of the good qualities of the person they are gossiping about.
  6. Have students identify the negative consequences of gossiping or complaining about co-workers and the personal benefits of avoiding gossiping. Then have them create separate wall charts listing these consequences.