ALT-2 How to Improve your Relationship with a Difficult Colleague
When you cannot get along with certain colleagues, your work day might not go very well. It can be beneficial to try your best to improve your relationship with a difficult colleague.
• Talk. Sit down and talk to the difficult colleague. Sometimes the only way to figure out what the problem is, is to ask the colleague. You never know if there is something going on in their personal life that is making them act out, so to speak, or perhaps they are just not a "people" person. Some people are just not very outgoing, and just want to do their job and go home.
• Compromise. Many problems can be resolved by simply sitting down and reaching a compromise. You do not have to like each other and be best friends in order to work together. If you can figure out ways to work around each other, then you will not have to deal with each other as often, and can avoid further issues.
• Third party. There are times when you and that difficult colleague may not be able to work things out, and you may need to bring in a third person to help the two of you. You might ask a co-worker or your boss to help with the situation. You might all be able to sit down and sort out the problem(s) or at least figure out a way to work around each other.
• Work together more often or less often. There can be benefits of doing either one. By working together more often, you might be able to get to know each other a little bit better and find out that you have some things in common. This can make working with that colleague not so bad after all. On the other hand, some people just do not mesh well together and sometimes the only way to really get along is by not working closely together. It is not being suggested to avoid that difficult colleague, just try not to work directly with them in order to limit possible issues.
The important thing to remember when dealing with a difficult colleague, is to not take their behavior to heart. There is a strong chance that their difficulty is not really about you. You never know what is going on in a colleague's personal life. If the difficulty is with you personally, then do your best to find out what the problem is and come up with a reasonable solution.
An article byBacal and Associates, foundhere, offers more information and tips on how to deal with a difficult colleague. Also offered are a couple of links to some interesting pieces on workplace communication and how to handle hostile customers. If you visit their website, be sure to check the "Free Stuff" tab, where you will find other interesting articles about business and the workplace.
