Carson was deep in thought. “How do I, as a manager, interrupt the cycle of victimhood, to shift a team’s mental state from negative to positive?”

“It’s not quite as simple as that,” I replied. “If the only states were negative and positive, we could solve that with a motivational speaker and posters on the wall.”

Carson smirked. “Yes, we tried that. The teamwork posters became wallpaper that eventually faded.”

“It’s not negative vs positive, though that is a start,” I nodded. “This is not a binary condition, like a switch we can turn on and off. Humans, teams and their mental states are more subtle. Let’s take a look at a number of parameters, and I will concede to the first as negative vs. positive.

• Negative – Positive
• Irrational – Rational
• Unscientific – Scientific
• Collusive – Cooperative
• Uncontrolled – Controlled
• Unconscious – Conscious

All of these are mental states. How do you, as a manager, influence a shift in the mental state of the team?”