ABSTRACT
The stroke climate in a family, a team, or in a company or organisation has a major impact on the health and happiness of people. The external consultant who engaged with the rapidly deteriorating situation used Transactional Analysis (TA) stroke theory in order to understand what was going on. Consciously working with strokes as a powerful tool in guiding management is one of the most underrated interventions in companies and organisations. The plan predominantly consisted of practical stroke experiments, in addition to training the staff and management on basic TA theory. Replenishing the stroke stock goes largely unnoticed, through the daily "Hello" and the cup of coffee with the janitor upon arrival, to the formal recognition during meetings, as when those present are thanked for their contributions. Excessive compliments or pampering, for example by giving predominantly unconditional positive strokes, can actually be just as harmful as neglect.
