Leaders who are caught up in drama or any conflicted situation have four choices:<ul><li>They can muster up the leadership courage to demand better behaviours from themselves and others.</li><li>They can learn to depersonalize the situation and live with the stress.</li><li>They can leave the organization, leave the team, and go somewhere else, which can depend on your involvement.</li><li>Become part of the problem, playing along with the games.</li></ul>

Caught Up In The Drama: The Choice For Leaders

The sheer number of social media posts about the Will Smith-Chris Rock incident at the Oscars is proof that it’s hard to resist the attraction to drama—especially when it’s not happening to you. As companies start to return to the office and watercooler talk is easier to engage in, office drama might start to pick up, especially after going through the pandemic for the past two years.

The Lure Of Office Drama

It may seem harmless on the surface, but office drama can have broader consequences. Drama can escalate to hurt people’s feelings and reputations, demotivate them, isolate them, and even take down a business.So while it might start as a healthy breather, it would be more healthy to laugh with your colleagues rather than at them. In the long run, you may be saving your own career.

The Impact Of Office Drama

Many people in the workplace—at every level of an organization—have brains that crave novelty, and the juicy intrigue of an office spat can deliver on that need. However, as a bystander to the drama and not the subject of it, they may believe they are going to be viewed by the decision-makers as more stable, reliable employees, worthy of retention and better compensation when compared to the more conspicuous ‘troublemaker.'.

The Bystander

We are social creatures who learn by comparing and contrasting ourselves with others. So when gossip and drama enter the scene and we are ‘invited’ to participate, our natural, biological inclination is to jump right into the toxicity because it affirms that we belong, and our perspective is valued.While not everyone is attracted to office drama, those who are may also find it to be a good method for battling under-stimulation or mundane daily surroundings at the office.