Summer hiatus is officially over and corporate politics are back full force. For some the workplace is a welcome sanctuary and an environment where they thrive and flourish. For others, work is a daily struggle, not for lack of skills, opportunity or experience, but because of the behaviors of difficult coworkers who make life a misery. A recent bayt.com survey found as many as 48% of candidates polled admitted to bullying being a problem in their workplace with 20% claiming they were the victims of bullying.If difficult coworkers are getting the better of you don’t throw in the towel just yet. While it may be tempting to call it quits and walk away from a bad situation there are usually many reasons to stay the course and try to find a workable solution. This is especially true if the job and company are otherwise attractive and the position is one that is challenging, stimulating and presents room for growth. Bayt.com has some important tips on dealing with office negativity.
- Ask some soul-searching questions.
Is the problem really the coworker or your own predilection to overreact or react negatively to a particular character type or situation? Do you have a history of not getting along with coworkers or with a particular type of person? Are you being fair, honest and open-minded?
- Decide whether you can accommodate the situation.
This does not mean seething in your cubicle indefinitely or maintaining a hostile isolated front in the face of enemy combatant. What it does entail is making a reasoned decision to make peace with the coworker’s negative behaviours and learning to live with your decision happily. This may be the path of least resistance if the behaviours are not outrageously offensive and do not at the end of the day truly interfere with your ability to do your job effectively. However if the behaviours are outright abusive and in danger of ruining your career and health, chosing to accommodate the situation may not be an option at all.
- Know how to confront constructively.
The key is ‘constructively’. Remember, if you do decide to have a ‘discussion’ with the coworker about behaviours that are impeding your own ability to perform, you must walk in with a set of clear, specific, well-thought out, well-articulated goals for the confrontation. Accusations, hurling insults, losing your temper are not what this meeting is all about. Keep your end goal in sight and stay cool, calm and collected as you discuss desired outcomes.
- Accept when you need help.
It may be that despite your best efforts to alleviate a difficult situation the negative behaviours persist and perhaps magnify. In that case it is definitely time to escalate and seek the seasoned opinion and helping hand of your immediate supervisor. Having him in on the loop will avoid any nasty surprises and should mitigate the situation if not completely put out the fire. If your immediate supervisor fails to act on what you perceive to be a serious situation, proceed to the next level of management. For more tips, read Bayt.com’s full article with 20 tips on how to deal with difficult coworkers.
