Before you can learn how to deal with passive-aggressive coworkers, you must realize what these individuals are all about. The following are a few examples of what you can expect from a passive-aggressive coworker.
Never take the first step to any goal without making sure that the passive-aggressive person is on board. Unless you intend to derail your goal, it is best to let them know.
If you see a passive-aggressive coworker around you again, take the initiative and say hello. Often, this allows you to establish rapport with them without them taking a hostile tone.
It will make them wonder why you weren’t civil to them in the first place. You are not bound to be friends, but you are bound to get on the same page.
If you find yourself dealing with a passive-aggressive coworker, be sure to be understanding and flexible. They will be agitated, and you cannot expect them to make things easier on you.
But try not to let it bring you down. Think of it as an opportunity to grow and become better as a person.
Never argue with a passive-aggressive coworker, especially if they are in a bad mood. While they may act tough, their actions are not always as aggressive as they may seem.
A lot of times, they are just trying to get their point across without an audience. You are not obligated to get upset or stop them.
So please take a deep breath and try to understand their perspective.
Read up on the topic of passive-aggressive behavior. It may make you feel uncomfortable, but you should still do it.
You never know how many passive-aggressive coworkers are out there, and you don’t want to be an ignorant or shy person.
Be open-minded
Look at things from a different perspective when you are dealing with a passive-aggressive coworker. Sometimes, they may be masking their feelings, and they may just be showing you a better way of doing things.
This is why it is always good to know things before you act. You may just be setting yourself up for future problems.
If you get into an argument with a passive-aggressive coworker, apologize and offer to help. They could have just been in a bad mood that day.
If you take responsibility for your actions, they may be more willing to forgive you.
Your passive-aggressive coworker will most likely call you names for no reason. Some passive-aggressive coworkers may use this tactic as a way to have power over you.
It can be hard to see through their anger. Try to understand that this is the type of person they are, and be patient.
Try to avoid thinking of a passive-aggressive coworker as a bad person. The only reason why you feel this way is because you haven’t done everything you can to get along with them.
They may be a nice person underneath it all.
To deal with a passive-aggressive coworker, try to work out a plan before the situation gets out of hand. Let them know about the schedule that you plan on adhering to.
This allows them to know what to expect if there is a miscommunication. You are also allowing them to come to you with any problems.
Try to avoid coming into contact with a passive-aggressive coworker altogether. You may try to avoid them by working in different departments or ask if you can work remotely or at home.
Being around this person may be detrimental to your health. Avoid them at all costs if you can help it.
Get a record of everything that your passive-aggressive coworkers do that bothers you. You can use this to help figure out how to handle the situation.
Write down all of the little things that you have noticed. Even the things you think are petty and really don’t bother you, you should write them down.
Move past it
As difficult as it can be to be around a passive-aggressive coworker, you need to find a way to move past it and get along. Being miserable because of a passive-aggressive coworker won’t get you anywhere and is a waste of your time and energy.
Instead, try to use the knowledge you have gained in this article to do what you need to do to get along with your passive-aggressive coworkers.
Next time you find yourself dealing with a passive-aggressive coworker, try using the tips mentioned here to avoid an unnecessary argument. Don’t let a passive-aggressive coworker dictate the outcome of your workday.
Even if you encounter them, remember that this article will help you get through it and have a productive day.
If you are in a situation where a passive-aggressive coworker is harassing you, then you should do the following: make sure that they know that you are having a hard time with the situation, ask them if they need help with anything, and if they say no, then ask if you can talk about something other than work.
Everyone hates their job, and sometimes it feels like passive-aggressive coworkers are why you work in an awful environment. To help you get through it, try to use the information from this article so that you can remain friendly with your passive-aggressive coworkers. You should be able to do that and get along just fine.
Cared. If they got mad and left, you could be sitting there wondering why things turned out that way. Try to look at this in a positive light.
Why did you work in a passive-aggressive environment? Try to find some way to deal with the situation, which may be nothing.
Try to remember that your job is important and that there is no way that you should have to tolerate a passive-aggressive coworker. Even if you do encounter them, try to work out a solution so that you can have a good day at work.
Always remember that someone has it worse than you do and that the situation you are dealing with may seem unbearable.
You need to be aware that many passive-aggressive coworkers lack communication skills, so you must learn to communicate effectively not to misunderstand what they are saying. Try to avoid misunderstandings at all costs.
There are many passive-aggressive coworkers out there who work for you. Unfortunately, you cannot avoid them all, and some of them may even come to you for help.
Knowing what to do in those situations can help you understand how to deal with passive-aggressive coworkers. The information from this article will help you get through this and be successful in your job.
Avoidance
All of the actions described so far could be described as avoidance behavior. The passive-aggressive coworkers of the world are just trying to avoid conflict.
If they don’t like what you are doing or if they feel threatened, they will make it seem as though you did something wrong even if you didn’t. For example, if they can’t stand the fact that you talk over them and make yourself the center of attention and talk about how they suck all the time.
They will do this even if you aren’t making any comments about them. They will make it seem as though you are gossiping about them. If they have reason to believe that you think they are doing something wrong, they will make it seem like you are making that assumption based on their own behavior.
The employer usually agrees with their observations, but a passive-aggressive coworker will throw it in the boss’s face.
When you notice a coworker avoiding your questions or acting out of the norm, make sure you ask them. Get clarification.
Keep your employees in the loop.
You will need to go over the things they said so you could verify that they did say what they say they said. If you don’t speak with them, you may have to figure it out yourself. Just be aware of what they are doing and keep asking them until you get an answer.
Conflict avoidance
This seems like the most obvious form of passive-aggressive behavior, but it is usually something most of us have to deal with at some point in our lives. Conflict avoidance is just the boss avoiding your questions or a coworker who blames you for their mistakes even though they are at fault.
Your boss is avoiding your questions. They may have to deal with a lot of problems, but instead of telling you how they would handle that problem, they will give you a 5-minute pep talk about how great they are at everything they do and how they are going to be at that task for the rest of their life.
Your coworker may blame you for something they are doing that is wrong. They will focus on what is happening at the moment and blame you for something that happened long ago.
Dismissal
Dismissal is a favorite passive-aggressive method of keeping you from doing your job. They may constantly berate you when you ask them to do something they do not like to do.
They may make your life miserable to make it look like they did all the work.
There are many different ways this can happen. If they don’t like the color of the blinds you bought for the office and want them changed, they will create a situation where you need to reorder blinds and request that they are put in.
They will give you a long list of requirements for you to put blinds in the office. You will go to the store, pick the blinds out, and get everything in order.
You will then sit down and write a check to pay for it. At the very end, you will get an email from the boss telling you that they will send someone to install them, but they need the blinds shipped overnight, and you need to do it by 10:00 AM the next morning.
You will have exactly 12 hours to get everything ready for the installation. The only thing you will have to do is order the blinds and get them shipped overnight.
Why would the boss do this? The boss will make it seem like the installation job is going to take the ENTIRE day. If you are the kind of person who likes to finish what you start, this will drive you nuts.
If you like to procrastinate as much as I do, you will get many emails and find yourself calling the company to get the order started for the blinds. When the boss sends someone to install the blinds, you will tell the employee that you have to go home and the next morning.
You will then never hear from them again. This will make it look like the installation job went smoothly. They may also send a thank you email or email you to thank you for your work on the blinds.
The thing is, your boss will do something like this every single time they come into contact with you.
Summary
When you become a manager, you will be subjected to a whole lot of passive-aggressive behavior. I am not saying that passive-aggressive behavior is good; I am saying that it is something you need to deal with if you want to become a good manager.
If you have problems like these that you are experiencing, you should know that there are many people out there who have the same problems as you do. The more people in the same situation you talk to, the more people will understand what you are going through and the more likely you are to overcome these challenges.
Hopefully, this will be useful to you somehow, and if you have any other questions, please feel free to ask in the comments.
