The Sunday Mail
THERE is something about people and weather that I do not understand.
Changing Perspectives
Rutendo Gwatidzo
It seems people generally tend to like a season that is yet to come.
For example, when we were in winter, many people wished for summer.
The past two weeks have been hot as we are now in summer.
I have, however, come across a significant number of people who are already complaining that it is too hot and they miss winter.
Good hygiene is mainly about keeping yourself and the environment clean
But the fact of the matter is, summer is here!
I would like to encourage everyone reading this article to exercise good personal hygiene, which is required all the time.
In summer, it becomes ever more important because heat exposes us to a lot of things.
For example, heat and bad odour are good friends.
Good hygiene is mainly about keeping yourself and your environment clean.
It protects us from diseases.
In addition to boosting self-confidence, it also enhances social relationships.
Last week, I held a team-building exercise with a group of more than 200 teenagers.
As we were sharing ideas on the subject of social relationships, I laughed out loud when a group of boys indicated that girls were not interested in having relationships with them because they do not have fat pockets.
But when we analysed the issue, we discovered that the boys did not have good personal hygiene.
Organisational status
The challenge in many organisations is that of having human resource practitioners who are not open enough to tell teams issues as they are.
For instance, if the company is struggling to restock and pay salaries, instead of telling employees like it is, some prefer to blame employees for poor performance.
Inasmuch as poor performance may be a contributory factor, sometimes it is not fair to focus solely on it because there may be several reasons for the company’s struggles.
Likewise, I have come across a significant number of team members who complain about their colleagues’ poor personal hygiene.
Surprisingly, some of their immediate supervisors at times fail to communicate this message to them.
There are certain basic personal hygiene practices that one should always practise no matter how much they bathe.
For example, you need to put on roll-on deodorant or something that serves the same purpose. The majority of teams at work share offices and sitting next to someone producing bad odour daily can cause a lot of tension and relationship problems.
If you find yourself being avoided, especially this summer, for what others term “no reason”, I advise you to check your personal hygiene before wondering what else might be wrong.
Some of the simple things to watch out for are using mouthwash and shaving armpits.
It is also important not to wear the same clothes on consecutive days. You should regularly wash your braids and weaves if you are a lady. Organisations should have an executive who is good at communication to take care of personal hygiene issues among teams.
The subject of personal hygiene may sound simple, but it is complicated and contributes to unnecessary tension among teams in the workplace.
It is easy to assume that someone knows he or she is producing a bad odour, yet a good number of them are not even aware of it. This is probably due to the fact that they are used to the odour.
As a result, some people will begin avoiding that person, pointing fingers, judging, naming, condemning and whispering about them in corridors.
The tension, if not managed, can grow and affect performance in various ways.
General facts
Many times, people tend to look for complicated answers when things go wrong or when things do not work out.
Interestingly, many times, the answers we seek are very simple and close to us.
Be inspired to protect yourself from different kinds of harm, diseases and negative expressions through good personal hygiene.
Keep all parts of your body clean and healthy. Poor hygiene can cause people to avoid you, leading to isolation and loneliness.
Remember, it is not always about having white teeth; it is about the odour that comes out of the white teeth.
In other words, it is not about wearing an expensive shirt or top; it is about washing that shirt and keeping it clean, as well as putting on roll-on to avoid having a smelly shirt.
Be challenged and encouraged to exercise good personal hygiene this summer.
Do not push people away from you.
Rutendo Gwatidzo is managing consultant at The HUB HR Consultancy. She is a multi-award-winning consultant, speaker and mentor. She is also author of the books “Born to Fight” and “Breaking the Silence”. Contacts: +263 714 575 805/ [email protected]/ Facebook: Rutendo Gwatidzo_Official
