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Its important to maintain a good relationship with your colleagues.
After all, most of us spend the bigger part of our day at work.
Things run much more smoothly when you and your teammate have mutual respect and understanding.
But not all coworkers can get along so well.
What do you do if your colleague is irritatingly incompetent or straight-up lazy?
The bigger part of the workload then falls onto your shoulders.
RedditorGetOffMyUnicorn70shared her strategy to deal with a coworker who isnt pulling their weight.
She believes that colleagues should be responsible for the same tasks equally.
The author of the post GetOffMyUnicorn70 also responded to our interview query.
you’re free to find her update below!
Unplugging my phone has worked like a charm, she gushes.
People are still getting the support they need, and I have one less irritation in the workplace.
The woman also took the advice of fellow Redditors.
I popped off the plastic tab to validate it was all just an unfortunate accident.
Who says the internet is a waste of time?!
Its understandable that the clueless response drove them to disconnect the phone in defiance, she says.
The thing is, the retaliation was aimed at the company with the potential of harming the business.
Not a great solution if you want them to thrive enough to keep you employed.
A passive-aggressive response is unlikely to result in any change, Louise explains.
The first step in addressing such an issue should be a conversation with your coworker.
In similar situations, Ive often thought, Well, at least Im not that persons supervisor.
Which is a lot easier to think about if you arent doing the work for both of you.
If talking to the colleague doesnt help, Louise then suggests taking it up to the supervisor.
In fairness, it was their job to monitor that coworkers performance, so where were they?
Ownership for performance improvement is between the supervisor and the employee.
A disgruntled colleague might have to bite the bullet and go have a chat about feeling overburdened.
How does one tell their supervisor about a colleague who isnt pulling their weight?
Image credits:Sora Shimazaki (not the actual photo)
Approaching that conversation might need some preparation.
Know specifically what it is exactly that your colleague is or isnt doing, Louise advises.
Some examples may be excessive socializing, most likely being on social media instead of working.
Louise suggests thinking about questions such as Did this problem just start or has it always been an issue?
Did they get oriented and trained properly to do the work?
However, its also important to be crucially honest with yourself.
Its easy to assume were the ones doing everything and no one else is, Louise says.
Maybe you work at different paces; fast work may be your superpower.
Again, arent you glad you arent supervising your colleagues!
Managers need to be clear about their expectations for teamwork and what that means in practice.
Then they need to look for examples of teamwork and call them out for praise and acknowledgment.
When opportunities for teamwork arent taken, that should be pointed out as well.
They have to get out of their office and observe.
Its crucial to inform every new hire about how the team divides the workload among themselves.
When hiring, its important to remember people are different.
Some are much better at working alone and dont want to be in a team.
Louise stresses the importance of asking people how they like to work.
Some people are better off as individual contributors, she observes.
Ask how they handle situations when theres a disagreement with a coworker or the workload seems unevenly distributed.
Ask what they most enjoy about being in a team, Louise gives some examples.
Its a lot easier to play well with others when thats actually your strength.
