The impact that silent problems (problems that are being avoided, neglected, are going unnoticed or are being intentionally silenced) tend to be profound and damaging. Their impact can affect performance areas ranging frm profitability, to employee engagement & turnover, to customer satisfaction. This morning I came across an interesting article by Bob Sutton that highlights this effect. The article is titled Bad is Stronger than Good - The 5:1 Rule. It states:
“Bad is Stronger Than Good” is the title of one of my favorite academic articles, which shows that negative information, experiences, and people pack a far bigger wallop than positive ones. I touched on this theme in The No Asshole Rule and dig into in detail in the forthcoming Good Boss, Bad Boss. But perhaps the most important finding for most of us is the research on romantic relationships and marriages: unless positive interactions outnumber negative interactions by five to one, odds are that the relationship will fail. Scary, isn’t it?
Several studies found that when the proportion of negative interactions in a relationship exceeds this “five-to-one rule” divorce rates go way up and marital satisfaction goes way down. The implications for all of us in long-term relationships are both instructive and daunting: If you have a bad interaction with your partner, one (or apparently two, three, or four) positive interactions aren’t enough to repair the damage. It apparently takes at least five — at least over the long-term. Related studies on workplaces suggest, along similar lines, that bosses and companies will get more bang for the buck if they focus on eliminating the negative rather than accentuating the positive (although the latter is important, the best evidence suggests that more effort and resources should be focused on getting rid of bad people and experiences).
When we leave silent problems to sit and ferment, it takes a lot of good will to neutralize them. And in most instances, we come up short. Yes, the odds are against you. In fact I would suggest that the longer they remain silent, the challenge could easily approach 10, 15 or maybe even 20 attaboys to neutralize an entrenched silent problem. That is a high mountain to climb.
This is simply one more reason why silent problems should be dealt with proactively, not reactively. And conducting a silent problem audit is an effective means to completing the task.
