David Kent

31/08/2019

Bullying is still part of the public service. This is an illustration of how the attitude of the Minister is reflected through the practices of the department. If the minister is a bully and his senior staff are bullies, then the effect flows on down the department to the lowest levels, and the workers are unhappy.

Staff are suffering low morale and high levels of bullying and harassment, employee survey finds

21/08/2019

Don't believe it when people tell you there is no bullying in the workplace. Here is an article from Australian public broadcaster the ABC, on how bullying and harrassment is very much alive.

If you have been bullied, or perceive you were bullied. The we can talk about it here!

Shocking allegations of public servants bullying other employees, stealing drugs from hospital trolleys and asking staff for s*x have been reported to SA's Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC).

03/07/2019

If you are being bullied at work, please put your stories here, so that other people can see! You are not alone. Share your experience. If you know of anyone who is being bullied, please tell them about this site. You can always send me a message and we can talk about your experience, I may be able to help you recognise a solution!

20/09/2018

How little do things change. When I set up this page to help people who are being bullied, little did I suspect that a bully would be installed in the White House, or that the face of bullying would become so obvious within the Liberal Party.

Yet bullying and power still go together! The more obvious are the bullies who are bad communicators, and fail to get there message across. These bullies like to coerce, instead of negotiate, or convince people that others should believe them. "If you don't believe what I say, I will make you do what I want!!"

The victim is always treated unfairly. The victim is denied natural justice because the bully is driven by a belief that they are always correct, even if other people must suffer, which is something they do not see or acknowledge.

Does the bully lack empathy?

A good manager, or leader, must always have empathy.

They must acknowledge the results of their actions!

During wartime, a leader, may make a decision that results in people be killed, and they will justify the decision by saying that it was for the "greater good".

Is the workplace a war zone?
Perhaps it is! The victims are the people who are stressed by managers driven by selfish ideals, or by a belief that they know what is best for their staff. The victims are systematically metaphorically disemboweled of their self belief. Ultimately leaving the work because of stress related illness,

Is life a war zone?
Perhaps it is! The victims are those less able to defend themselves. These people too become stressed by life, and feel that life is no longer worth living. The bullies in their lives feel no remorse, because they are not aware of the damage they cause, or they are just malicious people, who enjoy the power of power itself to cause hurt and pain, and to feel justified in having removed an impediment to their existence.

23/10/2016

I AM LOOKING FOR A PSYCHOLOGIST TO WORK WITH ME TO GET MY ANTI BULLYING BUSINESS OFF THE GROUND

It seems to me that in the many years since formulating my ideas and writing my business plan for a business to remove bullies from the workplace, that not much has changed out there in the real workplace environment.

I have not posted on this site for a long time, however this morning I heard Jeff Kennett was on the radio talking about how a KPI should be incorporated in the KPI's for CEO's that includes the mental health of the staff and organisation beneath them.

This strikes me as a good idea, however, while the method of measurement is subjective, it might still hide many bad things within the organisation unless the measurement process is fully transparent, and that the public can see the results as well.

The Kennett news item has prompted me to have another go at getting my business running. In order to do so, I need the help of a psychologist, who lives in Australia, preferably in Canberra or Sydney, who has counselling experience, and who has experience dealing with sociopaths and Type A managers.

The purpose of my business is to create workplace environments where people are productive and self motivated, and where they are not subjected to bullying or harrassment of any kind. A place where management provides leadership and support to its staff, and the staff, in turn, trust management as leaders and as people.

If you are interested in getting involved and are happy to work with me in getting this business running, contact me through this page.

If you think you know someone who might be interested, please share this post with them.

Thanks
David

25/05/2013

New marketing is: Improve your organisation's productivity, and improvements in profitability will flow almost immediately.

12/03/2013

Hi All,
Feeling tired at work, on a Monday, may not be due to an overactive weekend.

The stress and strain, of overcoming internal conflicts within oneself on Sunday night about going to work the next day, is a prime actor in the part of being tired when going to work the next day.

In effect, going to work on Monday, brings with it, the notion that really it was not Monday, and that next Friday can't come soon enough.

This dislike and mental tiredness is very wearing on the mind and soul of the worker, along with the fear of being blamed for the incompetence of others. Once you get on the bad side of the boss or others, then it is difficult to make matters better, as work is about having the support and confidence of others. A bad boss can muddy your waters for you without you really knowing what's going on, and a boss with an anti-social behavioral psychology will poison the waters around you in a way that you will never know it has happened, until it is too late.

It is what you don't know that will ultimately make your workplace intolerable for you.

David Kent Consulting works at identifying the problems and exposing the hidden agendas, and creating working liveable and enterprising workplaces. Call or contact David Kent thru this FB page as soon as possible, and let the consultant get to work.

28/02/2013

Here's a quick one for you!

Went to a fascinating talk last night at the Australian National University. The Talk was by author, Oliver Burkeman, the book is called "The Antidote - Happiness for people who can't stand positive thinking".

He has a refreshing point of view that positive thinking is not all that it is made up to be, and that the better way of making successful progress is to a negative attitude and consider the worst case scenario first, and essentially do not do ra ra positive thinking and take a single minded approach to progress no matter what, as the outcomes can be deadly, or extremely disastrous.

Anyway it got me thinking about what happiness is, Oliver Burkeman said to me later that he did not like defining happiness, as there were too many possibilities...fair enough I said.

So with respect to working in an office, the happiness is not the right word to describe the feeling a person would feel when they are not stressed or bullied at work. They must therefore attain some kind of sense of satisfaction from being in the environment where they have dignity and have self respect and have the respect and trust of those around them.

Bullying and stress from workmates produces, anxiety, depression and loss of self esteem and unhappiness at not wanting to be at work. Having no stress and no bullying then, would allow for clear thinking and clarity, and therefore progress in projects. This is one of the outcomes for all staff in a stress free bully free workplace.

David Kent Consulting is set up for producing this kind of workplace. Would you like to work there?

28/02/2013

I am currently focused on completing the work for Cert IV in Training and Assessment. Then I will get back to adding insights...but perhaps one just crossed my mind!!

22/02/2013

Imagine a community of people working in an office, they have no uncertainties about anyone they work with, they share information, they give each credit for work they do. They work at a heightened pace because they believe that everything they do is important to the organisation they work for.

Compare this with most offices and places to work, the workers are under constant pressure from the boss to produce work by set time frames, and the boss is constantly visibly watching the work everyone in the office does. Like Sherlock Holmes with the magnifying glass, every piece of work is scrutinised by the boss. The boss wants the work done his/her way, and no mistake will be tolerated. The boss is a somewhat perfectionist.

When it comes to the work of staff, it has to be exactly right, however the boss him/her self never does work as well as the staff, and therefore relies on the staff to create the perfection that they themselves cannot.

In an office where people are trusted to produce their best work, and given autonomy to do so, and are given the trust to produce work, even according to strict timetables, they will do so, because their intellect is trusted, and they are delegated responsibility according to skill. The boss will ensure that staff are trained properly, and that they are capable of doing the desired work. Bad bosses will not allow staff to be trained properly and then blame them for improperly done work.

The end result is that staff become unduly stressed by the boss and the environment, and eventually take much time off work as a result of work stress. This means for them, ultimately high anxiety, psychological conditions, and a huge loss of self esteem.

David Kent Consulting devises workplace strategies that ensure that the stress conditions are not allowed to develop, and where staff anxiety is stopped in its tracks. Creating such a workplace is not impossible, however it does take a while to achieve. The time spent in establishing this environment may take a few weeks to initiate the change strategy, however embedding the systems to become natural can be seen in terms of months and lots of one on one work to build and maintain staff confidence.

David Kent Consulting will also be working with the bad boss in one on one situations, this is also a slow process, and is complemented by regular testing of the way the boss can handle a crisis or crises. Bad bosses have a lot to learn and I do mean learn.

21/02/2013

What kind of questions can we ask that allows us to ask whether the boss is a bastard or not?

Here's one.

Does the boss take credit for the work of his/her staff, or do they give credit where it's due?

ANS: If the boss takes credit for staff's work, then this is not a good boss.

20/02/2013

Here is a list of the skills that I believe a manager should have:

Listening Skills: The ability to listen to what is being said and to let the speaker know they are understood;
Empathy Skills: The ability to understand the emotional state of the person they are talking with;
Negotiating Skills: The ability to reach a compromise state that satisfies both parties;
Management Skills: The ability to make a decision based on a reasonable understanding of the problem and the relationship between people and to guide and inspire outcomes;
Team leadership Skills: The ability to guide staff and other managers and ensure that a group of staff have the same goals and direction;
People Skills: The ability to get on with people and to make sure people are comfortable around them;
Communication Skills: The clear, concise and directed use of messages that convey an exact meaning to staff and other managers;
Critical Thinking Skills: The ability to question their role and the role of the staff they manage;
Diplomacy Skills: The ability to know when and when not to speak, and what to say; the ability to understand various viewpoints at once;
Patience Skills: The ability to be initially non-judgemental, and to examine the actions of staff over a reasonable period of time;
Speaking Skills: The ability and associated knowledge of enunciating words and messages clearly and the correct body language and the use of eye contact to show sincerity;

How many of these does your manager have?