Cooperation and Contribution:
The Battle for Territory
In the modern workplace window seats are important territory. They represent status, privilege, and recognition. The basic drive for territory hasn’t really changed since the early days of man’s existence, and primitive subconscious programs often create conflicts, behaviors, and reactions that interfere with cooperation and contribution. What constitutes territory in a modern workplace is much bigger than where your chair is, and much more important for the subconscious mind.
The subconscious will have a territory threat reaction any time there is any interaction that involves resources. Resources could be time, personnel, equipment, knowledge, compensations, access, or comprehension.
Resources can be as esoteric as competence. For example, if a job has a set of requirements that the employee understands and feels competent performing, then any change to those requirements may be construed as a threat by the subconscious mind. It doesn’t matter if the employee considers the change simple and reasonable, because that consideration is a rational brain function. Threat reactions trigger body chemistry that may result in illness, tiredness, loss of enthusiasm, foggy thinking, forgetfulness, and sabotaging behaviors. A simple change in requirements can trigger a threat reaction that may be invisible to anyone who isn’t conversant in recognition of subconscious reactions: all that will be detected is the resultant loss of performance.
The Going Beyond Success Workshop educates employees in recognizing the occurrences and effects of territory conflicts, and provides tools that can be used to make concrete changes that improve relationships in the workplace, and reduce employee stress. Ending the effects of the subconscious sabotaging behaviors has a dramatic positive effect on cooperation and contribution, resulting in a dramatic positive effect on workforce productivity and an increased bottom line.
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