There are times when you should take business personally. If you have ever felt heartbroken about losing an employee you have invested a great deal of time, money, and effort in, you know it feels personal. Or suppose you have spent hours writing and negotiating a proposal, only to have the client go in another direction. In that case, you can’t help to feel personally rejected. You are allowed to take situations like these personally.
In fact, we’d recommend that you do. Feedback, conflict, hard conversations, restructuring, losing a deal, lost collaborations, and the general highs and lows in your career are all part of workplace life. While we’re not saying you should get overly emotional or fall to pieces, sometimes it’s important to acknowledge the discomfort we feel from these disappointments. After all, maybe it is “just business,” but we’re not robots.
Taking Things Personally but Wisely
It’s important to manage your boundaries. There’s a difference between being passionate about your job and becoming overly attached to it. When we become too attached to the workplace, it defines us, and we attach our self-worth to it. This makes it hard to protect yourself mentally when things go wrong or mistakes are made. Accept responsibility for your own actions, but don’t take on every mistake as your own. Doing that can actually hurt your self-worth. If work is the most important part of your life, it can be hazardous to your mental and physical health. Find a happy medium where it is possible to appreciate the job and all those around while not basing your self-worth solely on your employment is a must.
There are some instances at work that you will take personally, but make sure not to beat yourself up over every little thing. When things go wrong, you have a chance to take a look at what happened and choose to make improvements. Don’t let the failures determine your value as a person. It’s okay to be disappointed and acknowledge that you cared. You can even get frustrated. Dig into the issue and see what happened. Continue developing your leadership and management skills and learn from experiences.
Success and Well Being
If you’re happy, you’re far more likely to be successful. That’s why your well-being is so important. Think about the people you’ve met who have a lot of energy. They are constantly thinking of new ideas and inspiring others. They make other people feel good because of their positivity. These are people that most likely take their work personally. It matters to them. Those who have depersonalized their work are probably the kind of people you avoid at work. They aren’t enjoyable to be around, lack energy, and have no enthusiasm. They try to bring others down with them. Who do you want to be in the workplace?
Not only is your state of mind influenced by taking your work seriously, but it also influences business results. Think about those happy, engaged employees and how their work performance looks. Chances are, it’s good. Engagement is just another way of saying, “taking it personally.” High levels of workplace engagement increase a business’s success.
Taking Things Personally without Compromise
Let’s talk about ethics. When you don’t take it personally, your ethics may be in jeopardy. The common denominator of all corporate scandals is that they lacked ethics. Activities like embezzlement, accounting fraud, and issues with workplace safety are all caused by a lack of ethics. When those in charge of a business adopt mindless, money-first, unethical, it’s just business ideas they’re washing their hands of personal responsibility.
If we fulfill our ethical responsibilities and obligations as a leader, then we are taking it personally. To dehumanize people is to ensure that the ball will be dropped. Customers may not be treated well, people may act in their own interests that hurt others, and many other issues arise.
The Workplace is a Huge Part of Your Life
Many of us spend a great deal of time at our job, and if you are the owner of the business, how can you not take it personally when negative things happen. The average employee spends eight hours a day at their job. Owners spend a great deal more time at work and thinking about work. You can either not be emotionally invested in the workplace and protect yourself or accept some benefits in making work personal. We are more dedicated to the things we are emotionally invested in.
Taking your work personally may hurt a little from time to time. You’re going to have feelings of disappointment, anger, and occasionally even a sense of doom. However, upon reflection, you’ll be able to find positives and learn. Being complacent and is not allowing yourself to grow. Like a turtle in its shell, you may be safe from the negative, but you also don’t see or feel any of the good things. Don’t be overprotective of your emotions. Take your work personally.
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