Ever feel like you’ve experienced “bullshit” in the workplace? Well, it’s become such a common occurrence that the term has now moved from a simple colloquial descriptor to actual academic research.
A group of researchers have created the “Organizational Bullshit Perception Scale (OBPS).” According to PsyPost.com, “The study’s authors say the scale could serve as a starting point for organizations hoping to identify and eradicate bullshit in the workplace.”
All of us have experienced some form of bullshit—defined as nonsense, lies or exaggeration—in our life and career. Maybe it was a CEO who glossed over an internal issue with platitudes or corporate jargon that everyone knew wasn’t really addressing the issue. Or perhaps a coworker exaggerated about their accomplishments in order to look good in front of the team. Bullshit connotes a lack of regard for the truth. And research has found it can have a negative impact on teams and their organizations.
This new OBPS looks at three key components of bullshit metrics in the workplace: cultural regard for the truth, how much leadership and hierarchy perpetuates bullshit, and language or jargon that can subvert meaningful conversations about internal issues. Researchers hope this new scale will assist leaders in determining the extent of decision-making that’s done with little regard for the truth and the harmful consequences for employees and organizational health.
This new measurement tool will be a welcome addition to conscious leaders who seek to create businesses with conscious cultures. The more we can foster honesty, collaboration, and genuine growth, the better for our teammates and the overall organization’s future.
Once we measure something, we need to make sure we take action to remedy an issues that surface. If your organization has a rather high bullshit rating, it’s time to evaluate internal culture and what kind of behavior is encouraged. Does jargon paper over deep issues that no one feels empowered to address? Does leadership speak in platitudes that tamp down dissent or input from others? Is the truth honored above self-interests?
It requires humility and a genuine desire to face the facts in order to address the cancer of cultural bullshit. Conscious leaders can help lead the way in prioritizing truth, honesty, and productive feedback. It’s an essential part of creating a conscious company that values all team members and understands the organization’s impact on all stakeholders.
It may sound like a rather funny metric: your organization’s bullshit rating. But as we develop our conscious leadership and build truly conscious teams, it’s a metric that will help us seek truth and honesty, which will unite our teams and lead to greater success.
Work happy. Live happy. BE happy.
Meredith
The way we work and build teams is rapidly changing. Leaders often feel unprepared to navigate the transition. As a conscious leadership coach, consultant and communicator, Meredith helps leaders and their teams create new ways of working and relating so they can prepare for the future by consciously co-creating it.
Contact her to develop your conscious leadership and transform your organization into the workplace of the future.
You can support my work developing more conscious leadership in the world by investing in a paid subscription to this newsletter. Upgrade your subscription today!
Connect with Meredith on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn for content related to these topics.