The office super-spreader

Every team has one. The colleague whose default setting is despair, who treats a ‘catch up’ as a confessional and the all-staff meeting as an open mic for grievance.

Unfortunately (and you probably already know this) moaning is contagious.

Negativity spreads through a team like a virus, and the manager who nods sympathetically along is the super-spreader handing out tissues.

Empathy is important - ask why someone's flat or distressed, and listen properly. But listening isn't the same as agreeing, and you can care how a person feels without sympathising, telling them you feel the same, then passing their moan around the office. 

Protecting the team's morale is everyone’s job, and it starts with what you choose to repeat.