Surviving the Office Bully
Bullying in the office is more prevalent than most people think. Business is more often than not the adult version of the children’s playground, and in the workplace there are more than one kinds of bullying. First off, what is a bully? A lot of people might think that they are being bullied after a couple of reprimands, or perhaps if they get into too many fights with an office worker.
Bullying incidents go beyond simple fights and disagreements; they are malicious and vindictive actions meant to deliberately humiliate and harm a person. It goes beyond mere dislike for a co-worker as well. In many cases they are stretched out over a long period of time and can cause the office worker’s output to decline in quality and volume, cause health problems, or even cause him or her to quit work completely.
The problem with office bullying, much like in the children’s playground, is that people are reluctant to acknowledge that they are being bullied.
Remember that every worker should not have to work in an environment that is uncomfortable. When you know you are being bullied, either by verbal or physical acts, you should take steps to fight and survive the ordeal. One of the things to keep in mind is the fact that there are people around you, friends and colleagues who can help be your support. You are not alone and you do not have to take this on your own.
Take a moment to think about yourself. A bully takes a significant toll on emotional and psychological aspects of the individual.Not to mention that it could have dire effects on mental health. People have become sick because when they are bullied, they do not eat, do not sleep, and do not rest at all.
If it gets so bad that you are contemplating leaving your cushy office job to transfer to a Fort Myers fence company halfway across the country to pound stakes into the ground, then you have to do something about it.
The most straightforward way would be to confront the individual who is doing the bullying, of course. It is obviously also the most difficult situation, but show them that you are not intimidated. Determine their motives, tell them to stop outright, and if that does not work, inform them that you’ll be taking it to the boss. There are also laws that protect office workers from things like discrimination and such. It is one option to think of if you are being bullied due to these concerns.
Of course, there are many ways that the employee can survive the office bullies, which are not confined only to authority figures by the way, and the above are only a few. Of course, many of these are things also applicable to the playground.