How To Deal With A Difficult Coworker

You have seen them, you have suffered them, you probably have been like them sometime.

They are rude, they yell, they are nasty, they are difficult to talk to, they dont cooperate, they seem to always make you lose your cool, your sanity.

Conflict at the workplace is a reality.

You cannot wish it away.

You can however learn to deal with it better and save yourself a lot of stress.

“Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional.”  ~ Max Lucade

Here are 7 things you can do to handle a “difficult coworker” without going crazy:

1. Be more empathetic, you don’t know what the other person is going through to behave the way he/she does.

2. Fight fire with water, resolve to stay calm while your coworker fumes.

3. Don’t judge, label your colleague, a one off conflict does not make him/her ‘difficult’.

4. Try and think of 3 good things about him/her.  Everyone is talented.

5. Try and sort out the issue behind closed doors, deny an audience to the attention seeking angry coworker when necessary.

6. Accept your mistakes honestly if you are in the wrong – and if all else fails…

7. Report a chronic trouble maker to the management

Parting advice:

The best way to win an argument is to refuse to participate in one.