Christmas bells are ringing just around the corner! It's that time of the year again and before you know it, it's 2016. It's not too soon to make a new year's resolution; especially if you should have dealt with this challenge ages ago.
Right, that toxic coworker next to your cubicle is your new year's resolution. You have to deal with her without burning the whole building.
You don't know why your coworker has this certain angst that you just don't want to be near her. Incidentally, everybody else doesn't seem to like her too. She has this attitude that can actually ruin your day. She has manners that make you skip your lunch so you won't have to see her in the pantry. She gives bad comments to everyone around instead of sweet compliments. She has ideas that are mostly irrelevant yet she's the only person talking out loud in every meeting. Nobody is speaking his mind when she's around. And the worst part is, she feeds your boss with all the stories that she can think of about the team in a really bad way.
It really is frustrating to have a coworker like that to be part of the team. She can jeopardize your project in a matter of minutes and waste everyone's effort.
Some people seem to have overwhelming patience and simply ignore difficult people at work. Others don't want to deal with those kind of people so they just quit their jobs and find better opportunities and hopefully better coworkers. But if you want everybody to grow successfully together with your beloved company, it's always good to do what is right and deal with your co-employee in a professional manner as much as possible.
Before the new year comes, you should have the courage to act up and deal with your toxic coworker before everyone will fire up and do things he or she will regret later. Here are five merry things to do on dealing with difficult people at work.
1. Get to know your coworker better.
Try to know your coworker as much as you can. Know what are her strengths and weaknesses. Know her personal life. Try to digest why that person always come to the office with a grumpy face. Maybe she has all the housework at home too. Maybe she's too tired at work and she just wants to take a good sleep but she can't and when she's in the office, she gets all burned out. Maybe she's going through a rough time and need all the help that she can get. When you find out what is the cause why your officemate is being uncooperative, you can already figure out what is going on in her mind. Try to put yourself in her shoes and know if you were in her situation, would you feel grumpy too? You can understand why she's acting that way. You can also know when to give her space or when to tell her she's doing it a little bit too much.
2. Be nice sometimes.
It doesn't mean that just because your coworker says nasty things about you, you'll do the same to her. In any given argument, a cool head is always better at getting useful solutions. If a clash between you and your officemate is already a regular thing, you can make a difference by giving her a cup of happiness for today. Why not offer her your extra GC of your favorite coffee shop. It's Christmas season anyway.
She'll probably think twice to accept your offer but if she feels your sincerity, she'll give in sooner than you think.
3. Express your thoughts in a subtle manner.
If nobody in your team has the courage to speak up about your toxic coworker, then it's time for you to let that air out of your lungs. Try to speak to her when you are all calm. It's not always good to express your thoughts when you have a hot head. All your educational background and your dignity will be out of the window if you are hot-tempered in dealing with your coworker.
You can send her a note or a letter if you feel that you can't tell her in person. Even in writing, you have to be calm.
Depending on how that team member will react, you will feel a sense of relief.
4. Ask help from your supervisor or the management.
When it's too tough to handle and you don't know what to do on how to deal with difficult people at work, it's probably time to let your boss know. Your supervisor has the right to know what's going on. If you intend to cover up the tension in the office, it might prompt the toxic coworker that it's alright for you to be treated inappropriately and she will continue to be a nuisance to everyone in the team. Your boss probably know better on what to do because he or she may have gone through the same situation. You can write a letter to your supervisor and he or she may ask the management or the human resource office that you or your coworker will be transferred to another department to avoid any more conflict.
5. Ask help from a third-party agency.
When there is already an escalating conflict in the office and it's too much for you. If your toxic coworker is already causing you sleepless nights and loss of appetite, you need to file case with the civil courts. If simple nuisance escalates to insolent acts, it may not be good for you to sit still. You can file a complaint at a civil service commission or any third-party agency that is mandated to act over your concern.
Difficult people at work come and go. What you need to do is get yourself a merrier work environment this new year-that includes dealing with that toxic coworker next to your cubicle.
Happy working Christmas!
Right, that toxic coworker next to your cubicle is your new year's resolution. You have to deal with her without burning the whole building.
You don't know why your coworker has this certain angst that you just don't want to be near her. Incidentally, everybody else doesn't seem to like her too. She has this attitude that can actually ruin your day. She has manners that make you skip your lunch so you won't have to see her in the pantry. She gives bad comments to everyone around instead of sweet compliments. She has ideas that are mostly irrelevant yet she's the only person talking out loud in every meeting. Nobody is speaking his mind when she's around. And the worst part is, she feeds your boss with all the stories that she can think of about the team in a really bad way.
It really is frustrating to have a coworker like that to be part of the team. She can jeopardize your project in a matter of minutes and waste everyone's effort.
Some people seem to have overwhelming patience and simply ignore difficult people at work. Others don't want to deal with those kind of people so they just quit their jobs and find better opportunities and hopefully better coworkers. But if you want everybody to grow successfully together with your beloved company, it's always good to do what is right and deal with your co-employee in a professional manner as much as possible.
Before the new year comes, you should have the courage to act up and deal with your toxic coworker before everyone will fire up and do things he or she will regret later. Here are five merry things to do on dealing with difficult people at work.
1. Get to know your coworker better.
Try to know your coworker as much as you can. Know what are her strengths and weaknesses. Know her personal life. Try to digest why that person always come to the office with a grumpy face. Maybe she has all the housework at home too. Maybe she's too tired at work and she just wants to take a good sleep but she can't and when she's in the office, she gets all burned out. Maybe she's going through a rough time and need all the help that she can get. When you find out what is the cause why your officemate is being uncooperative, you can already figure out what is going on in her mind. Try to put yourself in her shoes and know if you were in her situation, would you feel grumpy too? You can understand why she's acting that way. You can also know when to give her space or when to tell her she's doing it a little bit too much.
2. Be nice sometimes.
It doesn't mean that just because your coworker says nasty things about you, you'll do the same to her. In any given argument, a cool head is always better at getting useful solutions. If a clash between you and your officemate is already a regular thing, you can make a difference by giving her a cup of happiness for today. Why not offer her your extra GC of your favorite coffee shop. It's Christmas season anyway.
She'll probably think twice to accept your offer but if she feels your sincerity, she'll give in sooner than you think.
3. Express your thoughts in a subtle manner.
If nobody in your team has the courage to speak up about your toxic coworker, then it's time for you to let that air out of your lungs. Try to speak to her when you are all calm. It's not always good to express your thoughts when you have a hot head. All your educational background and your dignity will be out of the window if you are hot-tempered in dealing with your coworker.
You can send her a note or a letter if you feel that you can't tell her in person. Even in writing, you have to be calm.
Depending on how that team member will react, you will feel a sense of relief.
4. Ask help from your supervisor or the management.
When it's too tough to handle and you don't know what to do on how to deal with difficult people at work, it's probably time to let your boss know. Your supervisor has the right to know what's going on. If you intend to cover up the tension in the office, it might prompt the toxic coworker that it's alright for you to be treated inappropriately and she will continue to be a nuisance to everyone in the team. Your boss probably know better on what to do because he or she may have gone through the same situation. You can write a letter to your supervisor and he or she may ask the management or the human resource office that you or your coworker will be transferred to another department to avoid any more conflict.
5. Ask help from a third-party agency.
When there is already an escalating conflict in the office and it's too much for you. If your toxic coworker is already causing you sleepless nights and loss of appetite, you need to file case with the civil courts. If simple nuisance escalates to insolent acts, it may not be good for you to sit still. You can file a complaint at a civil service commission or any third-party agency that is mandated to act over your concern.
Difficult people at work come and go. What you need to do is get yourself a merrier work environment this new year-that includes dealing with that toxic coworker next to your cubicle.
Happy working Christmas!