All the rage

By Terri Stuart
Special to Aquatics International

“What are these?” she asks. “Safety goggles,” the staffer replies. “We require that you wear them as a precaution to protect against eye injury.” The mother becomes enraged: “WHAT?! Why do we have to wear these? I have never had to wear these before. This is ridiculous.” The irate member throws the goggles down, then storms out.

The example is racquetball, but the specific activity is irrelevant. It could be anything. From Maine to California, Minnesota to Texas — and all points in between — facilities have encountered this type of behavior.

Most often, it doesn’t escalate beyond the walls of your center. But be careful: One wrong word or one misperceived action, combined with a short-tempered guest, could lead to complaint, or even litigation, against your facility. Or perhaps an angry guest could storm off and trigger a confrontation with another guest, and then you could be saddled with two complaints.

Two types of rage
These people constitute 5 percent of your membership and take up 95 percent of your time: the man obsessed with the temperature of the hot tub, the woman who insists that “someone” keeps changing the clocks so the staff can leave early. These individuals make us cringe when we see them walk through the door. They seem content only when they are making someone else uncomfortable. Rookie staffers often are driven to tears at first dealings with them. So, what’s going on with such individuals? Why do they behave as they do?

Chances are, these people are not angry at the facility. The man who enters on a hot July afternoon only to discover that the pool is closed because of “No Chlorine” might already be upset because of job worries, money problems and the like. Rage behavior goes far beyond the garden-variety upset member. It is over-the-top and completely out of context for the situation at hand.

We typically see two types of such behavior: face-to-face and over the phone. People who display face-to-face rage have no problem with confrontation — in fact, they’re almost too comfortable with the idea. To them, chaos is order. Employees being flustered and stammering trying to keep this person calm puts these people in a position of power, a place they may not be too familiar with in other aspects of their lives.

Whereas those who engage in telephone rage — individuals who rant and rave over the phone, yet are calm and cool in person — in reality bristle at the idea of a face-to-face confrontation. So they take out their frustrations on the first person who answers the phone.

What sets rage behavior apart from just “upset members”? An upset member can show a range of emotions in response to stress: silence, frustration, aggravation and full-blown anger. But individuals who truly embody rage behavior typically show only one emotion in response to stress. If each individual were likened to a radio, the upset member would have a volume that’s easily adjustable; the rager has only one volume, and that’s full blast.

What is a facility to do? How does an organization that embraces values effectively deal with behavior that clearly does not? How do we maintain order in our facilities while still being member-friendly?

Deal with these individuals one-on-one in a calm and collected manner. Sometimes their frustration drives them to push buttons, so refrain from getting involved in arguments in which the topics include “everything but the kitchen sink” in an attempt to distract you from the real issue at hand.

Talk in lower tones; this instinctively makes an individual lower his voice. And listen attentively. People feel that what they have to say is important, so let them say it, while keeping focused on the issue at hand.

When the discussion continues in circles, try to remain on track to get to the heart of the issue. Say something such as: “I understand your frustrations and it seems like we’re discussing the same issues over and over again. How can we move on from here?” If the situation involves a mistake on the center’s part, ask: “How can we make it right?”

Preventive measures
Cognitive psychologists have examined how people process information and have come to some surprising conclusions, which can be directly applied to work in community centers.

First, people process positive information easier than negative information. Basically, this means that people understand rules, policies or directions easier when they are phrased in a positive manner. For example, instead of a sign in the pool area stating, “No running,” it would state, “Walk.” Secondly, people process information based on present tense. Instead of saying, “We will be closed July 4, but will be open July 5,” you should say, “We are closed July 4, but open July 5.”

Here are some more suggestions, based on psychological studies:

• Clear communications: Everyone from therapists to CEOs talks about establishing clear communications. But to communicate effectively, we need to understand our target audience and how it processes information it is given.

• Establish expectations: Review branch policies and procedures with staff and members. New members should receive a detailed list of facility rules, to make expectations clear up-front. There is no angrier member than the one who joins “so the kids can swim while he works out” and then finds out that his 9-year-old cannot be unattended at the pool.

Ensure proper notification of fee changes, schedule changes and the like.

Hang signs in high-traffic areas such as locker rooms, the lobby, hallways. Afraid there are too many signs posted about “Pool Closed Because of Chemicals”? Better post two more. Drastic changes to fees and schedules call for multiple mailings or telephone calls to regulars.

• Consistency: Enforce all policies and procedures consistently. If extenuating circumstances call for further evaluation, meet with these individuals separately. In incidents of “message vs. manner” when an individual becomes upset at the way in which he was addressed, respond by acknowledging his frustration, but remain steadfast in support of the branch policy and the staffer. This acknowledges this person’s feelings, but still supports the employee.

• Empowerment: Authorize the front-line staff to make decisions, then use positive reinforcement to reward those who “own the problem” and take initiative to solve it.

If the situation needs to be handled differently next time, use it as a teachable moment in a staff meeting instead of correcting the individual in front of the upset person or other employees. The quickest road to improvement is through practice.

• Mission-based decisions: Govern your decisions according to your values. In difficult situations, ask yourself: “Are we being caring?” “How would I feel in this person’s shoes?” “Is this person being responsible?” “Have we shown respect to this individual?”

The staff must walk the talk daily. We cannot hold others to a higher standard than we hold ourselves.

• No-tolerance policy: Establish a no-tolerance policy for unacceptable behavior such as fighting and cursing.

Make consequences sure and swift to reinforce the severity of the violation. Use law enforcement personnel, if necessary. The executive director should conduct incident reviews. Enlist volunteer support by establishing a standards committee comprised of volunteer staffers. Address repeat offenders through certified letter and/or direct counseling with witnesses.