Dealing with Difficult People in the Workplace
Posted on September 02, 2024 by Wendemy Elkabor, One of Thousands of Health and Fitness Coaches on Noomii.
This blog provides tips for employees who have to deal with difficult co-workers, supervisors, or managers.
Working is essential for making a living, but the workplace can be grueling for most people. Some colleagues may be lifelong companions; others may not be all that great. This is mainly because the workplace is where most people compete to make a notable name for themselves. Most people don’t choose to play fair to reach a higher level in the organization’s hierarchy.
If you’re facing problems with difficult people, try to remain patient. It’s always important to deal with the issue at hand calmly and avoid making a scene. Getting angry or making a fuss out of the situation might lead to severe repercussions.
Tips to Deal with Troublesome People in the Workplace
In case your colleagues and or other workers are proving to be difficult within the workplace, here are some tips you can work on implementing in your life.
Take the Other Person’s Feelings into Account
To start, it’s always a good idea to consider someone else’s feelings. See how they might be feeling and move forward from there.
Although it isn’t justifiable to treat someone terribly, your colleague might just be having a bad day or going through their problems. For this reason, showing some empathy is always praiseworthy, consequently allowing people to understand what they’re inflicting upon others.
In addition, by taking someone else’s feelings into account, you may be able to understand where they’re coming from. Plus, you’ll be able to tell what’s causing them to behave as such and find an effective solution for their troubling actions.
Try to Stay Calm
Patience is vital when dealing with annoying people who hinder your work. Try to remain calm if and when your colleague is having difficulty. Most people enjoy the thrill of having another person freak out or get irritable.
If you don’t cater to their needs and avoid getting frustrated, they might give up on annoying you and stop being difficult.
Even though staying calm isn’t easy, it’s one of the most effective ways to deal with difficult people in the workplace.
File a Report
If you’ve done all you can to get someone who’s difficult off your back, then filing a report may be the way to go. By filing an official report, you will make the organization aware of the upsetting situation that you’re in and how it’s having an impact on your life entirely. Organizations take workplace interactions seriously and will undoubtedly cater to your complaint.
You’ll be called into the Human Resources Department to inform them of the issues you’ve faced in detail. Please don’t shy away from the truth and tell them about any problems you’ve been facing due to someone else’s actions.
In this way, the consequences would be dire for whoever bothered you, leading to their being much more careful in the future.
Make the Other Person Aware of Their Actions
One thing to note about problematic people is that they might not be aware of how they’re being difficult. It would be best to let them know well in advance so that they are mindful of how their actions bother them.
Even though most people aren’t inclined to behave adequately because they want to feel superior, others may be unaware of your boundaries.
This is why you must notify someone who’s being difficult about your boundaries firsthand. Let them know how you expect them always to treat you.
Treat Them with Respect
Another quick fix for dealing with a difficult person is to show them respect either way so that they become mindful of how their actions hurt you.
This may prove to be difficult, but it has its effects. Treating the other person disrespectfully will only tarnish your character, so it’s better not to do so.
As Mahatma Gandhi stated, “An eye for an eye would only make the whole world go blind.” This indicates that behaving terribly in response to someone else’s difficulty will only further escalate the situation.
Concentrate on What Could be Implemented Upon
Instead of taking severe steps to stop someone from being difficult, a good idea would be to concentrate on what could be executed. For instance, if you plan on submitting an official complaint, consider what would happen and how it could be helpful towards the problems that you’re facing.
When implementing different procedures, it isn’t expected to stop the other person from being bothersome; ignore them.
Ignore Them
If nothing else is working, it’s best to ignore them altogether. They are likely to attain a certain amount of thrill by seeing you in distress.
Nevertheless, if you stop giving them the satisfaction they desire, they’ll stop being troublesome immediately.
Ignoring them may prove to be all too difficult for most people, yet it can undoubtedly be helpful in terms of the situation at hand. By ignoring the actions of someone who’s being difficult, you’ll take away their feelings of superiority, forcing them to behave with decency and civility.
Conclusion
The workplace can truly be a wonderful place for individuals to socialize, get together, and discuss their problems. However, there are tons of individuals out there who make the workplace unbearable, so it’s always resourceful to know what to do if and when someone is proving to be difficult.
Dr. Wendemy
