Emotional Maturity at the Root of Company Politics

Physically, nearly all humans follow a set growth pattern, we are babies, then toddlers, then tweenies, then teenagers, etc. If we look at a person, their physical attributes can help us to determine the person’s physical life stage; tiny kicking limbs is characteristic of a baby, a face full of spots probably means a teenager and grey hair indicates the person is on the wrong side of forty.

Our physical maturity is to a large extent outside our control and barring extensive props and make-up, we cannot fool people into thinking we are much younger or older than we are. 

As we age, we also show signs of emotional maturity. A toddler is usually impetuous and selfish, while an old grey beard is patient and tolerant. And we often make the mistake of thinking that emotional maturity (EM) is as pre-determined as physical maturity, and that physical appearance is a reflection of emotional maturity (EM). It is not. Many adults have the emotional maturity of a toddler and conversely sometimes young children display emotional maturity far beyond their years. 

Emotional Immaturity is the cause of many of the relationship problems and politics that occur in the workplace. Employees with low EM will gossip about others, keep information to themselves and see conspiracies everywhere. The employees are always in conflict with either their own team members or members from other departments and they can never accept that they are in wrong. In fact, many problematic behaviours can be a direct result of the person’s low emotional maturity. 

How can you determine the emotional maturity (EM) of a person? 

Like all other aspects of the human condition, there is a continuum of maturity that you can use to determine your own EM level as well as that of other people. 

Here is an approximation of an emotional maturity continuum:

But how do you deal with low emotional maturity in your employees? 

We develop emotional maturity through challenging ourselves, exposing ourselves to difficult situations and undergoing hardship. But of course, learning is also big part of developing EM, and parents, teachers and other role models play a pivotal role. 

In the workplace intensive training, coaching, honest feedback, and challenging assignments can all be used to get employees moving in the right direction of the continuum. 

At Grayfeather we have experienced first hand how difficult it can be for organisations to adopt future orientated cultures and strategies when many of the employees struggle with low emotional maturity. Our CEO of your Own Career is a leadership programme for leaders at all levels, starting with the leader of self, then managers of employees, managers of teams, managers of department and finally leaders of business units. 

The programme has been purposefully designed to develop the skills of employees and managers to become more emotionally mature. It also focusses on instilling the necessary knowledge for employees, managers and leaders to help them navigate the future world of work and to contribute to organisational success. 

To find more feel free to Contact Us.