Building a Culture of Love

A 2014 longitudinal study by Sigal G. Barsade and Olivia A. O’Neill examined companionate love in a long-term care setting. A culture of affection and care was associated with greater employee satisfaction and teamwork, and with less absenteeism and emotional exhaustion. The researchers also reported associations with patients’ mood, quality of life and satisfaction. These findings describe associations in that setting; they do not guarantee the same results in every workplace. (Source) Building a Culture of Love

Defining a Workplace Culture Based on Love

The simple answer is that the definition of the word nowadays is mostly taken to mean that of passion and intimacy, a topic that is geared against in the workplace. However, there are different levels of love, and the one we are talking about right now is the socially caring aspect of it or the mutual concern we should all have for each other as people. In this sense, the love that we are talking about is the most fundamental emotional need in our day-to-day lives; a need that should be fulfilled not just at home or with close ones, but at work as well.

Building an Emotionally Sympathetic Culture

Building a culture of love in the workplace means emphasizing warmth over sternness for high results. Having this sort of dynamic of companionate love in any company is important because it keeps people connected, and a community that feels connected also tends to be more committed to each other, in both good times and in bad. Furthermore, employees should not only receive attentive appraisal and feedback when they are doing well but also when they are underperforming. After all, a little sensitive insight from a fellow colleague or manager could be all one needs to get back to their best self. On the other end, a workplace culture of love is also one that realizes and steps in when an over-achieving and loyal employee is ignoring their personal well-being and not taking any time for themselves in exchange for a workaholic lifestyle.

Being Mindful of Ourselves

Workplace love can be put into practice not only through the words we carefully choose to speak, but also in our vocal tone, body language, and facial expressions too. While this may seem like additional work to those for whom these things don’t come naturally, keep in mind that the extra effort to make helpful statements in a polite way of our own accord is what maintains a strong work culture. A workplace’s emotional tone is shaped by everyday interactions as well as formal policies.

Taking Company Policy into Consideration

The difference between a workplace with love and one without is that managers and colleagues don’t just show care about maintaining and improving the success of the company they work for, they also show interest and consideration for each other’s overall well-being throughout the process. As you can already tell, “love” in this case can have many meanings, such as caring, sympathy, concern, appreciation, and many more. So be sure to add a touch of each of these terms into company procedure on how internal matters should be dealt and handled. Make care and consideration part of everyday workplace practice. Alongside clear expectations and useful feedback, these habits can help colleagues support one another.

Final Thoughts

To sum it all up, make it known that the norm around the office is that a person’s well-being is taken accounted for when it comes to their performance. Aim to make concern for people’s well-being a regular part of workplace decisions and interactions.