OFW guide: How to deal with difficult co-workers
vHorrible bosses? How about horrible employees? It's not unusual for people to find it hard to deal some co-workers. No organization is perfect; there are bound to be some problematic workmates in every workplace.
The question is: How do you deal with them?
A story on the Washington Post surveyed almost 60 managerial, professional and technical employees of various ages and who come from different workplaces.
They identified the qualities that make people difficult co-workers, who the story noted can be found at every level in organizations:
(1) Aggressive or disrespectful behavior
Co-workers who use attack their fellow workmates through intimidation, sarcasm, or disrespect, which results in a hostile work environment.
(2) Poor communication style
People who choose the wrong medium of communication, such as criticizing others through email, or being too talkative or blunt. The article noted that this may result from the co-workers being poor listeners.
(3) Too much or too little control
Being controlling and inflexible or disorganized and lax makes for a problematic co-worker.
(4) Emotional displays
People who create drama in the workplace, or are too negative, or are prone to outbursts make it difficult for their co-workers to be productive in the workplace.
(5) Unethical or excessively self-interested
Selfish co-workers who do not consider others, or those who lie or blame their workmates create issues in the workplace.
(6) Sub-par work quality
Co-workers become irritated at people who do not carry their own weight because of their ineptitude, which consequently increase the workload and make the workplace more difficult for others.
The article noted a surprising finding that despite knowing about the problematic qualities of some co-workers, some managers ignore the issue and expect employees to handle the problems on their own.
This will make the employees lose respect for their superiors and may even lose money, clients, and the workers themselves if the managers do not address the problem, the report said.
Meanwhile, an article on "O" magazine, owned by American talk show host Oprah Winfrey, listed five problematic co-workers: They were labelled Boss Haters, Stars, Sliders, Pity Parties, and Self-Promoters.
(1) Boss Haters
These are people who incessantly complain about their superiors, "using every kind of subterfuge from eye-rolling to outright belligerence, until management loses patience and ousts them."
To deal with them, the article suggested a "freeze-out." You ignore the Boss Haters' rants instead of bearing or reasoning with their problems, and hopefully they will lose their energy to continue their complaining.
(2) Stars
These people are most of the time highly enjoyable to work with, according to the article, because of their skills and personalities that are beneficial to the workplace.
However, some Stars turn into bullies because they know their worth.
To survive the workplace, the article suggested no other choie but to accept Stars' positive qualities and just ignore the bad.
(3) Sliders
The article described these people as former Stars who slack off because they have already proven their worth already, consequently burdening their teammates with this attitude.
To deal with these types of people, the article said it's better to respect the Sliders for the contributions, which could make you turn them into your mentors and ask them for their advice later on.
(4) Pity Parties
Those who have every possible excuse and sob story just so they can get off work and pass them on to you or your other workmates belong to this label. To handle them and to possibly stop them from asking you or your workmates from help in the future, the best way is to avoid them as much as possible.
(5) Self-Promoters
They are people who pounce on every opportunity that will make them advance and who occasionally wreck the chances of their workmates, said the article.
To ensure you won't fall victim to their ploys, it is best to keep overdelivering to be recognized as team player, something that Self-Promoters will never be known for and might even hurt their chances in the workplace. - Gian C. Geronimo, VVP, GMA News
The question is: How do you deal with them?
A story on the Washington Post surveyed almost 60 managerial, professional and technical employees of various ages and who come from different workplaces.
They identified the qualities that make people difficult co-workers, who the story noted can be found at every level in organizations:
(1) Aggressive or disrespectful behavior
Co-workers who use attack their fellow workmates through intimidation, sarcasm, or disrespect, which results in a hostile work environment.
(2) Poor communication style
People who choose the wrong medium of communication, such as criticizing others through email, or being too talkative or blunt. The article noted that this may result from the co-workers being poor listeners.
(3) Too much or too little control
Being controlling and inflexible or disorganized and lax makes for a problematic co-worker.
(4) Emotional displays
People who create drama in the workplace, or are too negative, or are prone to outbursts make it difficult for their co-workers to be productive in the workplace.
(5) Unethical or excessively self-interested
Selfish co-workers who do not consider others, or those who lie or blame their workmates create issues in the workplace.
(6) Sub-par work quality
Co-workers become irritated at people who do not carry their own weight because of their ineptitude, which consequently increase the workload and make the workplace more difficult for others.
The article noted a surprising finding that despite knowing about the problematic qualities of some co-workers, some managers ignore the issue and expect employees to handle the problems on their own.
This will make the employees lose respect for their superiors and may even lose money, clients, and the workers themselves if the managers do not address the problem, the report said.
Meanwhile, an article on "O" magazine, owned by American talk show host Oprah Winfrey, listed five problematic co-workers: They were labelled Boss Haters, Stars, Sliders, Pity Parties, and Self-Promoters.
(1) Boss Haters
These are people who incessantly complain about their superiors, "using every kind of subterfuge from eye-rolling to outright belligerence, until management loses patience and ousts them."
To deal with them, the article suggested a "freeze-out." You ignore the Boss Haters' rants instead of bearing or reasoning with their problems, and hopefully they will lose their energy to continue their complaining.
(2) Stars
These people are most of the time highly enjoyable to work with, according to the article, because of their skills and personalities that are beneficial to the workplace.
However, some Stars turn into bullies because they know their worth.
To survive the workplace, the article suggested no other choie but to accept Stars' positive qualities and just ignore the bad.
(3) Sliders
The article described these people as former Stars who slack off because they have already proven their worth already, consequently burdening their teammates with this attitude.
To deal with these types of people, the article said it's better to respect the Sliders for the contributions, which could make you turn them into your mentors and ask them for their advice later on.
(4) Pity Parties
Those who have every possible excuse and sob story just so they can get off work and pass them on to you or your other workmates belong to this label. To handle them and to possibly stop them from asking you or your workmates from help in the future, the best way is to avoid them as much as possible.
(5) Self-Promoters
They are people who pounce on every opportunity that will make them advance and who occasionally wreck the chances of their workmates, said the article.
To ensure you won't fall victim to their ploys, it is best to keep overdelivering to be recognized as team player, something that Self-Promoters will never be known for and might even hurt their chances in the workplace. - Gian C. Geronimo, VVP, GMA News
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