Unprofessional Negativity
December 7, 2024•172 words
Dealing with extremely unprofessional and negative colleagues can be challenging.
Avoid unnecessary interactions with negative colleagues.
Position yourself physically away from them.
Say "No" Clearly
If a colleague's negativity disrupts your organization's work, state that you need to focus on your organization's and tasks.
Don’t Mirror their negative behavior. It is a dead end.
Stay calm, composed, and professional.
Matching their negativity only escalates the issue. They want conflict and they want to cause issues.
Log everything...
Unprofessional actions, especially if their behavior crosses ethical or policy lines.
Use Neutral language to avoid emotional responses.
Don’t take It personally, understand that some people are extremely negative and dysfunctional and they want to cause havoc and chaos and disruption in an organization.
What are their motives?
Behavior often reflects their own insecurities, personal struggles, or dissatisfaction with their job/career.
Detach Emotionally
Remind yourself that you have control over your own thoughts and feelings.
Cautious Empathy
Understand their perspective. A brief, empathetic conversation shifts the dynamic.