TL;DR: People mirror the attitudes around them more than they realize. Instead of fighting someone's negative attitude head-on, change their environment by surrounding them with positive influences. Research shows this approach works better than direct confrontation and creates lasting behavioral change.
I had this guy on my team. Smart as hell, but his attitude was toxic.
Every meeting, same story. "This doesn't make any sense." "Why are we even doing this?" "That'll never work." No reasoning. No alternatives. Just negativity that spread through the room like wildfire.
Here's what I didn't do: I didn't sit him down for some heart-to-heart about his attitude. I didn't give him a performance improvement plan about "being more positive."
Instead, I moved him.
I paired him with three of our highest performers. People who showed up every day with energy. Who said "let's try it" instead of "it won't work." Who asked, "How can we make this better?" instead of shooting down ideas.
Two weeks later, something shifted. Same guy, different response. "Sure, let's give it a shot." "What if we tried this approach?" "I see what you mean."
I didn't change him. I changed his environment.
The Science Behind Attitude Contagion
Turns out, this isn't just management intuition. It's basic human wiring.
Research from a massive study involving 689,003 Facebook users found that emotional states transfer to others without their awareness, leading people to experience the same emotions simply through exposure to others' expressions (Kramer et al., 2014). Studies show emotional contagion happens through a process where a person influences the emotions or behavior of another through conscious or unconscious induction of emotional states and behavioral attitudes (Schoenewolf, 1990).
Think about it. You walk into a room where everyone's complaining. Ten minutes later, you're complaining too. It's not a choice. It's contagion.
Research reveals that emotions, both positive and negative, spread among employees like viruses, significantly influencing judgment and business decisions, usually without anyone having a clue what's going on (Barsade et al., 2018).
The key insight? The workplace environment plays an important role in shaping the behaviors of employees individually, with worker motivation, efficiency, and performance all shaped by the quality of the workplace environment (Hussain et al., 2018).
Check Your Own Attitude Mirror
Here's what I've learned about managing this in yourself:
Energy audit your environment. Look around. Who are you spending time with? Are they lifting you up or dragging you down? Studies show that taking breaks from negative social media exposure can increase positive affect through less exposure to negativity (Coviello et al., 2014).
Track your language patterns. Notice when you start sounding like the people around you. Are you using their phrases? Their tone? Their default response to challenges?
The 24-hour test. After spending time with someone, how do you feel the next day? Energized or drained? Optimistic or cynical? Your body knows before your brain does.
Change your inputs. You can't always change your team, but you can change your inputs. Listen to different podcasts. Read different content. Hang out with different people outside work.
Use the 5:1 rule. Research suggests offering at least three positives for every one negative you put out, whether it be criticism, a frown, etc., as such positivity can be contagious and make your workplace a better and safer place (Petitta et al., 2019).
Environmental Intervention Over Direct Confrontation
Instead of trying to force attitude changes, design environmental changes.
Seat the negative person next to your most positive team member. Include them in projects with high-energy collaborators. Invite them to lunch with people who naturally see possibilities instead of problems.
Studies show that employee commitment and performance are significantly mediated by workplace environment factors, with worker motivation shaped by environmental quality (Vischer, 2007).
It's not manipulation. It's understanding how humans actually work.
The Burnout Connection
Bad attitudes aren't just annoying. They're dangerous. When you're constantly exposed to negativity, cynicism, and resistance, your nervous system stays in a state of low-grade stress. That's a direct path to burnout. Protecting your attitude isn't about being positive all the time. It's about protecting your energy reserves so you can show up as your best self when it matters most.
Take Action Today
Stop trying to change people's attitudes through logic or demands. Start changing their environment instead. Look at your own environment right now. Who's influencing your default responses? Make one change this week. Move your desk. Change a meeting dynamic. Grab coffee with someone who energizes you instead of drains you.
Your attitude is contagious. Make sure you're spreading something worth catching.
Ready to level up your leadership skills and create environments where people thrive? Let's work together at meet.drdegnan.com
Cheers, my friend!
—Oliver
