Maximise business through coping with emotional clutter


HANS FOGH LAUSTSEN
Master in the Psychology of Organizations
Pg. Organizational Anthropology
St. M.Sc. Neuroscience and Behavioural Change
Do you have a structured approach to make ethics support business strategy?
Why Business Psychology makes better business
In 30 years in corporate business, I've never seen a single project that went exactly as planned. ​
Apparently, “people” always seem to clutter up very good plans.​​​
​
The workplace is a battleground between emotional clutter and business goals
This human clutter is clearly a difficult thing to deal with in practice business. The degree of complexity is enormous. Very large parts of this clutter are hidden beneath the rational surface.
Understanding of human behaviour is about recognising that our actions, thoughts and emotions are always changing and driven by both conscious and unconscious motives. These motives often compete each other. They influence the way we perceive reality and how we interact with others.​
​
Navigating Emotional Dynamics
In leadership, it is crucial to understand that individuals cannot always bring their complete personality into every situation. Factors such as role and personal needs affect how a person presents themselves - and what side of themselves they show in different situations.
This dynamic interplay happens on an unconscious level and creates a vast amount of individual subjective realities. The parts of reality that the person doesn't recognise from previous experiences is constructed by unconscious "disturbances" that come and go while interacting. This process happens automatically and unconsciously. It is about filling in the gaps in sensing reality with beliefs, habits, prejudices, desires and ambitions.
Behaviour is influenced - psychologically speaking - by two competing realities: the rational and emotional. Business work is under the influence of both a rational goal-orientated work AND a more unconscious emotional clutter.
A team's everyday work is not only about achieving goals, but also about navigating internal dynamics that may be driven by personal ambitions or conflicts.
8 typical emotional clutter issues:
-
We tend to fill in gaps in our understanding with fragments from past experiences or inner instincts.
-
Reality is not a one-size-fits-all concept. Each person brings their own mix of rational thinking and unconscious drives to the table. Navigating this can create a tension between the rational goals of the group and the hidden motivations of its members.
-
We all strive to avoid the anxiety that arises when we realise our limitations.
-
Loyalty to an organisation is linked to our sense of belonging and self-awareness. Sometimes we can sacrifice parts of ourselves to fit in and align with the values of the organisation.
-
When groups face threats, they may resort to unconscious mechanisms such as dependency or avoidance. These behaviours can derail the group's business goals in favour of survival instincts.
-
In interactions, we take on and assign roles based on societal expectations and personal inclinations. These roles, influenced by both conscious and unconscious factors, affect how we act and how groups function.
-
Leadership is a delicate balance of power when managing intellectual labour. To what extent should leaders control the thoughts and ideas of their team members?
-
The many ethical codes of the zeitgeist affect the authority of managers and place great demands on balancing morals: Who is responsible for employees' emotions?
Success in business requires the ability to intervene in these hidden processes.
Understanding these underlying dynamics can help leaders manage teams more effectively. Unfortunately, it's not enough to be aware of the two realities - it's necessary to be able to navigate both and also to be able to resolve emotional conflicts. That's the way to ensure that both business and emotional tasks are addressed to achieve optimal business performance.
​
Emotional clutter affect production!
It takes the right professionalism and position to identify and address these processes openly to support the business. If you don't react in real time - and with the right legitimacy - you'll have to deal with accusations of over-interpretation and ulterior motives.
It often creates conflict and hurt feelings when a formal leader approach them - because linking the personal emotional and business aspects is easily confused with the exercise of inappropriate power and authority. It is an extremely delicate subject that requires great professionalism to intervene in. ​
​
The more emotional clutter there is
- the less work gets done.
A business psychologist has the skills and the formal role to intervene in the emotional clutter and facilitate the work to focus on the business work.
It simply makes better business to use the right expertise for a task.​​
​
Let's bridge the gap between emotional and rational realities in a structured and professional manner.
​​
​
Dive deeper into the topic​
-
Bakka, J.F. and Fivelsdal, E. (1998) Organisationsteori: struktur, kultur, processer. 3. udg., 2. opl. Copenhagen: Handelshøjskolens Forlag.
-
Bion, W.R. (1961) Experiences in Groups and other Papers. London: Tavistock Publications Limited.
-
Dittmer, J. (2024) Ethics, Applied | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Available at: https://iep.utm.edu/applied-ethics/
-
Fisher, J. (2003) ‘Surface and deep approaches to business ethics’, Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 24(2), pp. 96–101. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1108/01437730310463288.
-
Freud, S. (1948) Beyond the pleasure principle. Hogarth press London.
-
Gallup, I. (2020) ‘Gallup Q12® Meta-Analysis’. Available at: https://www.gallup.com/workplace/321725/gallup-q12-meta-analysis-report.aspx
-
Goffman, E. (2002) ‘The presentation of self in everyday life.’, Garden City, NY, 259.
-
Goleman, D. et al. (2008) ‘Primal Leadership: Realizing the power of emotional inteligence’. Journal of Applied Christian Leadership: Vol. 2: No. 2, 76-80.
-
Hirschhorn, L. (2003) Autoritetsrelationen i nye sammenhænge. Personligheden på arbejde. Translated by H. Nybo. Denmark: Hans Reitzel Forlag A/S.
-
Hochschild, A.R. (2015) ‘The Managed Heart’, in Working in America. 4th edn. Routledge.
-
Jørgensen, B. (2004) ‘Psykodynamiske perspektiver på ledelse’, in Psykodynamisk Organisationspsykologi. På arbejde under overfladen. Denmark: Hans Reitzel Forlag A/S.
-
Kirkeby, O.F. (2002) Loyalitet - udfordringen til ledere og medarbejdere. 1. udgave. Denmark: Samfundslitteratur.
-
Kirkeby, O.F. (2006) Ledelsesfilosofi: et radikalt normativt perspektiv. 1st edn. Frederiksberg: Samfundslitteratur.
-
Klein, M. and Segal, H. (1997) Envy and gratitude and other works: 1946-1963. London: Vintage.
-
Moskowitz, M.J. (1977) Hugo Münsterberg: A study in the history of applied psychology, American Psychologist. US: American Psychological Association.
-
Obholzer, A. (2003) ‘Autoritet, magt og lederskab; Bidrag fra grupperelationstræning’, in M. Marijnissen (tran.) Det ubevidste på arbejde - Fra arbejdspres til arbejdsglæde. Denmark: Psykologisk Forlag, pp. 69–80.
-
Obholzer, A. and Roberts, V.Z. (2003) Det ubevidste på arbejde - Fra arbejdspres til arbejdsglæde. Translated by M. Marijnissen. Denmark: Psykologisk Forlag.
-
de los Ríos-Berjillos, A. et al. (2023) ‘Fostering a culture of business ethics: a roadmap for responsible management through codes of ethics based on the experience of Spanish companies’, Social Responsibility Journal, 19(9), pp. 1689–1706.
-
Roberts, V.Z. (2003) ‘Organisering af arbejde’, in Obholzer, A., Det ubevidste på arbejde - Fra arbejdspres til arbejdsglæde. Translated by M. Marijnissen. Denmark: Psykologisk Forlag, pp. 69–80.
-
Rogers, K. (2018) ‘Do Your Employees Feel Respected?’, Harvard Business Review, 1 July.
-
Simmel, G. (1992) Soziologie. Untersuchrungen über de Formen der Vergesellschaftung. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp Verlag.
-
Stokes, J. (2003) ‘Ubevidste fatorer i grupper og team - bidrag fra Wilfred Bions arbejde’, in Obholzer, A., Det ubevidste på arbejde - Fra arbejdspres til arbejdsglæde. Translated by M. Marijnissen. Denmark: Psykologisk Forlag.
-
Visholm, S. (2004a) ‘Autoritetsrelationen’, in Psykodynamisk Organisationspsykologi. På arbejde under overfladen. Denmark: Hans Reitzel Forlag A/S.
-
Visholm, S. (2004b) ‘Intergruppedynamik’, in Psykodynamisk Organisationspsykologi. På arbejde under overfladen. Denmark: Hans Reitzel Forlag A/S.
-
Visholm, S. (2004c) ‘Organisationspsykologi og Psykodynamisk Systemteori’, in Psykodynamisk Organisationspsykologi. På arbejde under overfladen. Denmark: Hans Reitzel Forlag A/S.
-
Visholm, S. and Heinskou, T. (2004) Psykodynamisk Organisationspsykologi. På arbejde under overfladen. Denmark: Hans Reitzel Forlag A/S.
-
Yalom, I.D. (1970) The theory and practice of group psychotherapy. New York: Basic Books.
-
Yalom, I.D. and Lescz, M. (2005) The theory and practice of group psychotherapy. fifth edition. New York, NY: Basic Books - Perseus Group.