Is there an elephant running rampant through your workplace?
If so, I have news for you:
That elephant can wreak havoc while everyone does their best to look away.
Of course, relationship elephants don’t leave a physical trail of footprints and broken branches.
But, they do leave a psychological trail.
Sometimes we’ve gotten so good at tolerating an elephant that we don’t realize it’s there.
Or, we don’t allow ourselves to fully register an elephant—it’s too scary or uncomfortable.
If we numb our intuitive senses, the elephant can quickly become the norm.
However, ignoring the elephant (or any problem) won’t make it go away.
That’s why it’s helpful to figure out what the presence of an elephant feels like.
When we do, we can begin to connect those warning signs with the need to take action.
For me, an elephant in the room often comes across as energy of direct, silent heaviness.
There’s tension, and I feel tightness and pressure that can make it hard to breathe.
My eyes dart back and forth, looking for the cause.
What about you?
What does it feel like to you when you are experiencing an elephant in the room?
Take a moment and think about your own experience.
It’s important to tune into that feeling because it’s the first step in fixing the problem.
Need a field guide to identifying all the elephants in your workplace? Pick up your copy of Don’t Feed the Elephants! on Amazon today.
Sarah Noll Wilson is on a mission to help leaders build and rebuild teams. She aims to empower leaders to understand and honor the beautiful complexity of the humans they serve. Through her work as an Executive Coach, an in-demand Keynote Speaker, Researcher, Contributor to Harvard Business Review, and Bestselling Author of “Don’t Feed the Elephants”, Sarah helps leaders close the gap between what they intend to do and the actual impact they make. She hosts the podcast “Conversations on Conversations”, is certified in Co-Active Coaching and Conversational Intelligence, and is a frequent guest lecturer at universities. In addition to her work with organizations, Sarah is a passionate advocate for mental health.