By Dorcas Karuana,
In the workplace you’ll encounter the good, the bad and the ugly. Some co-workers are really good and you can count on them at all times. Some are bad, meaning they just don’t know what they are doing and they make mistakes, while others are ugly, meaning they are out to get you.
Just the other day, we saw the career of Chief Registrar of the Judiciary, Gladys Sholei almost sinking. Her being sent away on compulsory leave by a few members of the Judicial Service Commission unproceduraly brought in an element of malice in the saga.
Career sabotage is not about a co-worker who takes credit for your work or occasionally alienates you in the office, but it is generally rooted in cunning and unscrupulous, revenge or malice with the underlying intentions being insidious and quite threatening.
Co-workers can try to sink your career because most workplaces prize individual achievement over and above anything else. Some may feel threatened and are intimidated by you and your talents. Others want your job outright, and making you look bad may allow them to get their foot in the door. Or some are struggling at work and feel insecure in their job, hence react by also trying to bring down others.
1. The master delegator - This co-worker is either always asking, “Can you help me with …?” or saying, “I need you to …” And whenever s/he’s in charge of a big project, the person shoves a bulk of the tasks your way. Some are also quick to say, “I’ve already got a lot on my plate.” But, as far as you can tell, his plate is no fuller than anyone else’s. In fact, with all of his delegating, it’s starting to seem like he’s not pulling his weight.
2. The control freak - You point out a new idea or an improvement—like getting more creative with the wording in a report or tweaking the steps in an old procedure—but she’s determined not to change a thing. With her, there’s little room for input or innovation. Sure, tenacity has its virtues, but her stick-to-imitativeness feels more like pain.
3. The know-it-all - You may also know him as the Super Achiever or the Spotlight Hogger. He’s not always the best or the brightest (often, he’s quite average), but he certainly thinks that he’s top dog. He also expects to lead, not follow. So he’s the first person to take the floor, always piping up with a “here’s what we should do” idea in a meeting—even though he doesn’t always have the substance to back up the hype.
4. The Procrastinator - His catchphrase: “I’ll get it to you tomorrow.” His schedule is always full of hold-ups, and his emails have plenty of excuses for why something’s unfinished (and possibly not even started yet). Maybe he’s legitimately overwhelmed, maybe he’s lazy—who knows why he’s always late. But you’re not the only one who wishes that you could count on him to deliver the goods on time.
5. The Gossiper- This toxic co-worker is a splitter who is often involved in office gossip with a mean streak and bad intentions to create riffs—or splits—in office relationships. They aim to build mistrust over time with the other person, side-eyeing one another and second-guessing each other. Such gossipers will tell you what they overheard someone deriding your work, only to sidle up to that other person to tell her/ him something entirely different.
Dorcas is a Human Resource Consultant at Corporate Staffing Services. Email: dorcas@coproratestaffing.co.ke. Website: www.corporatestaffing.co.ke
In the workplace you’ll encounter the good, the bad and the ugly. Some co-workers are really good and you can count on them at all times. Some are bad, meaning they just don’t know what they are doing and they make mistakes, while others are ugly, meaning they are out to get you.
Just the other day, we saw the career of Chief Registrar of the Judiciary, Gladys Sholei almost sinking. Her being sent away on compulsory leave by a few members of the Judicial Service Commission unproceduraly brought in an element of malice in the saga.
Career sabotage is not about a co-worker who takes credit for your work or occasionally alienates you in the office, but it is generally rooted in cunning and unscrupulous, revenge or malice with the underlying intentions being insidious and quite threatening.
Co-workers can try to sink your career because most workplaces prize individual achievement over and above anything else. Some may feel threatened and are intimidated by you and your talents. Others want your job outright, and making you look bad may allow them to get their foot in the door. Or some are struggling at work and feel insecure in their job, hence react by also trying to bring down others.
1. The master delegator - This co-worker is either always asking, “Can you help me with …?” or saying, “I need you to …” And whenever s/he’s in charge of a big project, the person shoves a bulk of the tasks your way. Some are also quick to say, “I’ve already got a lot on my plate.” But, as far as you can tell, his plate is no fuller than anyone else’s. In fact, with all of his delegating, it’s starting to seem like he’s not pulling his weight.
2. The control freak - You point out a new idea or an improvement—like getting more creative with the wording in a report or tweaking the steps in an old procedure—but she’s determined not to change a thing. With her, there’s little room for input or innovation. Sure, tenacity has its virtues, but her stick-to-imitativeness feels more like pain.
3. The know-it-all - You may also know him as the Super Achiever or the Spotlight Hogger. He’s not always the best or the brightest (often, he’s quite average), but he certainly thinks that he’s top dog. He also expects to lead, not follow. So he’s the first person to take the floor, always piping up with a “here’s what we should do” idea in a meeting—even though he doesn’t always have the substance to back up the hype.
4. The Procrastinator - His catchphrase: “I’ll get it to you tomorrow.” His schedule is always full of hold-ups, and his emails have plenty of excuses for why something’s unfinished (and possibly not even started yet). Maybe he’s legitimately overwhelmed, maybe he’s lazy—who knows why he’s always late. But you’re not the only one who wishes that you could count on him to deliver the goods on time.
5. The Gossiper- This toxic co-worker is a splitter who is often involved in office gossip with a mean streak and bad intentions to create riffs—or splits—in office relationships. They aim to build mistrust over time with the other person, side-eyeing one another and second-guessing each other. Such gossipers will tell you what they overheard someone deriding your work, only to sidle up to that other person to tell her/ him something entirely different.
Dorcas is a Human Resource Consultant at Corporate Staffing Services. Email: dorcas@coproratestaffing.co.ke. Website: www.corporatestaffing.co.ke
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