Guarding your dreams against workplace bullies

by Oct 28, 2015

When an employee starts off with a new job or even joins the workforce for the first time, that person is usually filled with excitement, along with a healthy dose of nervousness and apprehension.  The new employee is typically brimming with ideas and is all set to prove the company that he or she is a good hire.  However, most of these feelings go away for unlucky employees who would encounter workplace bullies.

Bullies, and other employees, would usually assess a new joiner’s skills and strengths.  However, if the bully feels that the new hire’s capabilities are a threat, then they would try to take control of the situation by displaying negative behavior.  It can be in the form of subtle workplace bullying or very overt actions such as verbal abuse.  At times, the employee who is bullied at work would be forced to do things that the bully wanted. These actions may or may not be good to the company.  It also sometimes affect the reputation of the bullied employee at work.

So how could one overcome these workplace bullies? According to this article (click here) a new employee should seek out a good mentor is key.  It would also help if that mentor is someone who can help deflect or take bullets for their staff members, or willing to spend time to develop and further grow talents in the company.

To learn more, click here to read the full article.

Do you know how much money chronically bad behavior costs your company? Spoiler alert – it’s a LOT higher than you want it to be. Download our data and worksheet to see how it’s costing your organization and what you can do to fix it.

 

About Catherine Mattice

Catherine Mattice, MA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP is President of consulting and training firm, Civility Partners, and has been successfully providing programs in workplace bullying and building positive workplaces since 2007. Her clients include Fortune 500’s, the military, several universities and hospitals, government agencies, small businesses and nonprofits. She has published in a variety of trade magazines and has appeared several times on NPR, FOX, NBC, and ABC as an expert, as well as in USA Today, Inc Magazine, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur Magazine, and more. Catherine is Past-President of the Association for Talent Development (ATD), San Diego Chapter and teaches at National University. In his book foreword, Ken Blanchard called her book, BACK OFF! Your Kick-Ass Guide to Ending Bullying at Work, “the most comprehensive and valuable handbook on the topic.” She recently released a second book entitled, SEEKING CIVILITY: How Leaders, Managers and HR Can Create a Workplace Free of Bullying.

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