Anyone who has found themselves to be the subject of unwanted attention can know how uncomfortable and stressful this can be.
Organisations are no different.
We talk about letting others live their own lives and so make their own mistakes and learn from them in our post entitled "Break Time Quickie - Adopt the French approach of "Laissez Faire" to StressBust™".
But we live in a society in which certain people regrettably revel in the misfortune of others, whereas other people can become obsessed by what they perceive to be scandal; and when not in control of a full set of facts for any reason, people can unfortunately often make 2 plus 2 equal 6.
Social media, in its turn, means information and opinions, however valid, can be dispersed globally in seconds and sit there for an organisation's lifetime and beyond.
This is, for example, the case with online personal or organisational "naming and shaming". It is beyond the ambit of a stress management tool such as StressBustingExpert4Business™ to comment on the legality of this; but suffice to say that it seems to afford public access rights which are wider in scope and length than the spent period of some serious criminal convictions, thus on its face appears difficult to reconcile with the rules of proportionality, human rights and privacy.
But whilst privacy laws try to catch up with the emergence of the internet as the world's newest main communication channel, and the related immediate global spread of information, they still have a long way to go.
So how do you StressBust™ your organisation being the centre of unwanted or unsolicited attention pyhsically or remotely as a result of information posted online or elsewhere?
Well there are a number of important things to remember as follows:-
● nobody is entitled to sit as Judge and Jury on your organisation's actions, other than a Judge or Jury. The court of public opinion can be harsh and cruel, but it is ultimately nothing more than that - mere opinion
● over zealous or excessive interest in others on a person's part can say more about what is fundamentally lacking in their own lives than that of the target of their interest; remember, every person and organisation has something in their history that, looking back, they wish they had done differently, or are disappointed or embarrassed by, whether they admit it or not - see our post entitled "Break Time Quickie : Open the Door to Imperfection – it can be Liberating as well as Stressbusting™" - and focusing on others can simply be them transfering their own denial on to someone else, as is further elucidated in our post entitled "The Dangers of Denial to StressBusting™"
● to notify insurers of any prospective coverage that may be required within any relevant policy notification timescales that apply
● if you are patient enough and do not rise or engage, interest will in most cases decline naturally. So extremely difficult though it can be when you feel your organisation is under attack, try not to marinate too much in the drama; today's newspapers truly are tomorrow's fish and chip papers, in the sense that news becomes old news quickly if you can weather the initial storm; but this may require the use of coping techniques by those affected, e.g. staff and family members, such as those contained in our posts entitled "Stressbusting™ Techniques to Manage & Calm Overwhelm", "Break Time Quickie – Disperse Aggression with an Ancient Technique" and "The Value of Morning "Stretchbusting™""
● any statements made to the Press or otherwise on the issues to hand should first be approved by Public Relations specialists, whether they be in house or external. Do not delay in securing such support if you feel you may need them, as the earler in the process they become deployed, the greater the likelihood of successful reputational damage management or mitigation. As a rule, keep any statements very short and factual; acknowledge where appropriate but, again, do not engage
● if, despite you refusing to engage or having politely requested a desist, your organisational space is still being unduly invaded by others, be aware there are personal and organisational legal rights of action against conduct amounting to, for example, harassment, coercion, economic duress, malicious falsehood and defamation that you and your organisation are entitled to access; and do not be afraid to consult a specialist or the authorities to help you do so if any continued invasion becomes unbearable, oppressive or unhealthy to your organisation or staff.
If you can relate to the contents of this post and would like the further value of our extensive expertise in this area, please reach out to us in confidence via our "Contact" page.
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