Tips Towards Stopping Workplace Violence

Successful People Can Be Prone to Violence and How You Can Effectively Manage Your Workplace to Stop Violence

By
Relationship Advice Expert April Masini

Lately, every time I turn on the news it seems like another rich person in a high-powered job has committed a horrible and violent crime. Shouldn't people in these positions be happy with their lives and not want to harm others? I employ a lot of successful high-powered people and never had to worry about them going crazy. But now that I'm seeing all this news, I'm starting to wonder what I can do to make sure there is no violence in my workplace.

Sincerely,

Wealthy Wackos At Work

Dear Wealthy Wackos At Work,

The only twist on an old crime is that there is more portrayal and media coverage of it than ever before. The feelings and the crime are old news. The technology that allows the broadcast and dissemination of this news is new, new, new. That's why you feel like these crimes are happening all of the sudden. They've always happened. You just didn't see them.

News is everywhere.

When domestic violence and murder come into the public eye today, the news is faster, more coverage and more outlets for coverage. There are not just newspapers and television news shows to broadcast the news -- there are more television and cable channels than ever, and they're all looking for content. The more news, the more content. Or, the more room for content, the more need for news. Then, there are websites that never existed last year let alone five minutes ago. And the websites are all outlets for news -- in fact many television broadcast news outlets are beaten for stories by the websites.

Successful people committing violent crimes.

Take the recent news of Lisa Nowak, who went berserk and was only recently fired from NASA, for example. The only surprise in astronaut Lisa Nowak's behavior is that people are so shocked that an astronaut who's been photographed with President Bush would behave in such a way. The truth is that social behavior doesn't have to do with socio-economic status, income, age, race, or gender. It doesn't have to do with the job a person holds, the amount of education they've had or the kind of car they drive. Doctors, politicians, heads of state, and truck drivers all get crazy when it comes to love. Jealousy and other derivative behaviors surrounding peaceful, healthy love, are centuries old and the source of some of our greatest operas, novels, movies, and other forms of artistic expression -- and history.

Somewhere along the line that is Ms. Nowak's life, while she was able to complete the education and training that led her to a fruitful, successful and rare career, no one taught her what to expect and how to behave in interpersonal relationships -- especially romantic ones. Somewhere along her life line, a parent didn't teach her that if someone doesn't want you, your best and most healthful bet is to find someone who does. Her self-esteem was not very high if she felt that violence and attempted murder were the only ways to have the love that she wanted.

Biological predisposition to violence?

As a relationship expert, I don't believe that she had a biological predisposition to violence. What I believe is that she had a social conditioning that led her to believe she was entitled to what she wanted -- at any cost. It takes a degree of narcissism to believe that you can kill a romantic rival to get your lover -- in fact, I'd venture to say that she didn't attempt this violence in the name of love. She attempted it in the name of competition. And competition is something that Ms. Nowak mastered in order to become the astronaut she did. Competing for grades, for jobs, and for status what is a man's career field of science may have led her to act so aggressively in this personal decision she made to attempt murder on a romantic rival. This is much more the behavior of a man than a woman.

If what Ms. Nowak wanted was love, there were far better ways to get it. But I suspect that it wasn't love she wanted, but control of a situation she felt was out of her control.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND THE WORKPLACE

Domestic violence affects workplace behavior and productivity -- and so does domestic health and happiness, in the exact positive way. Acknowledging this affect of home on office productivity is a good step for managers of offices.

Here are some tips for effectively managing your workplace:

* Accept that by employing people, you are an employer, but you also may want to take on a moral responsibility toward helping your employees maintain health -- whether it's health insurance so that they don't get sick from the flu or other garden variety illnesses or mental health insurance so that they can get mental health support and remedies when they have issues that are damaging and affecting their mental health.

* Take a zero tolerance policy to all violence. If you believe that someone is a victim of domestic violence notify your local hospital and/or police station to find out the appropriate steps to take. The first step has to be to stop the violence.

* Understand that people who are victims of domestic violence often have a history of this behavior -- as victims or perpetrators -- that predates their current relationship. This is not something that is easy to cure, but it is something that is curable with help and understanding of the dynamics.

* Promote good health in your company -- both physical and mental. Set examples by ensuring that top management takes good care of themselves.

April Masini -- nicknamed "the new millennium's Dear Abby" by the media, is author of the best-selling books Date Out Of Your League and Think & Date Like A Man, the two (just released) step-by-step dating and relationship manuals, Ideas for a Fun Date and Romantic Date Ideas, and the critically acclaimed dating and relationship online magazine www.AskApril.com.

© 2004-2009 AskApril.com, LLC. All rights reserved. AskApril®, AskApril.com®, and Ask April® are registered trademarks owned by Masini Enterprises, Inc. This material can only be republished and redistributed if it is kept in it's original form, including, but not limited to, all AskApril branding, banners, links, books, and credits.