A toxic work environment can poison and drain a person’s energy, spirit, and soul. Dealing with toxic people in the workplace can suck the life out of you, which causes resentment, anger, rage, and often acute unhappiness.
So, how does a person navigate a toxic work environment, maintain sanity and remain mentally and emotionally healthy?
Here are 3 tips on how to survive a toxic work environment.
1. Avoid Office drama
Steer clear of all drama in the workplace.
Toxic people love to stir drama and spread their negativity! Avoid office drama like the plague! Do not engage.
Whether you’re dealing with negative gossip about your coworkers, or dirty office politics, sidestep and avoid engaging in these types of conversations and situations. Do not lower yourself to the same level and always remain professional. Gossip about coworkers is negative and petty. Office politics can create unnecessary drama and interpersonal conflict and divisiveness. Steer clear is my advice. Engagement only generates more negativity.
Keep your exit from the conversation brief. You can politely excuse yourself. Communicate that you’re busy. You are not required to explain. Gossipers and drama queens will get the hint.
2. FIND AND CREATE ALLIES
Find and socialize with coworkers who are more positive-minded, who are supportive of you and your projects or your work, and those colleagues you can trust.
If you are new to your job, I suggest keeping to yourself and avoiding all negative people. It’s far better to feel a little lonely at the office than to experience your energy being completely drained by other people’s negativity.
Constant negativity and complaining are instant mood and energy killers, which ultimately effect productivity and happiness levels while you are at work.
You know the type of negative person I speak of – the constant whiners and those who view life strictly through a negative lens, the ones who frequently project blame onto others, and who do not take any personal responsibility for the problems they themselves have created.
So, avoid all negative people. Instead, find supportive and more positive-minded allies. Even if you find just one single person whom you can trust and confide in, having one ally alone helps you to manage and cope far better when working in a toxic work environment.
3. Adopt a POSITIVE OUTLOOK
A toxic work environment can be viewed differently than a nightmare you must face each day. Instead, you can can view a toxic work environment as a growth opportunity to rise above the nonsense and be a bigger and better person. You can still thrive and do an excellent job, so focus on doing the best job you can, regardless of all that is happening around you.
One way to achieve this is to focus more on all the various aspects of your job that you enjoy the most, and to capitalize on the positive aspects of your work environment that you appreciate. For example, try to place focus on all the perks of your job or workplace that you genuinely appreciate and benefit from.
You can also adopt a positive viewpoint on your role and purpose. One game I’ve used is to pretend I am working for myself. When working for yourself, you certainly want to do the best job that you can. Imagining this scenario has helped me personally to adopt a positive mentality and to feel more motivated and inspired when dealing with a toxic work environment.
Ultimately, by focusing on the more positive aspects of your job and work environment, this helps generate positive emotions which help counter any negativity occurring outside yourself. Generating more positive thoughts and emotions function as a protective barrier for yourself, like an imaginary bubble surrounding and protecting you from outside harm.
If your workplace is especially hostile or if you are dealing with a toxic boss, this article may be helpful for you: How to Manage a Hostile Work Environment and be Happy.
For additional reading on being happier at work, check out my article, Eight Tips for How to be Happy at Work.
So there are 3 tips on how to manage a toxic work environment. Here’s to your happiness and remember, don’t let the turkeys get you down!