7 Ways You Might Be Unintentionally Driving Your Coworkers Crazy
From following work email etiquette to touting your teammates accomplishments (or your own in a humblebrag kinda way), chances are you make a real effort to be an outstanding collaborator to your coworkers of all ages. Bravo, girl! Unfortunately, there is still a chance you could be doing at least one innocent thing that drives your coworkers crazy. To figure out which habits and behaviors might be making the profesh people around you feel totally batty, we put together a list of the seven most common complaints we’ve collected over the years. Scroll on to see if you’re guilty of any of them.
<b>Giving off negative vibes</b>
Whether it’s about your teammates, boss, being overworked or paid too little, no one likes a Debbie Downer — even if you definitely don’t mean to come across as totally ungrateful or whiny. Do your best to keep an upbeat attitude and nip issues right in the bud by speaking up about them directly. You’ll feel better and people will respect you much more.
2. Scheduling meetings late in the day. Studies show that most people lose focus and decision-making energy by the end of the work day. This means that late afternoon meetings catch your teammates in rare form, where they might be unusually stubborn or even too okay with a potentially terrible idea. Instead of being the person who rounds everyone up at the worst possible time, bring the best of everyone together in the late morning hours (or at least before 3pm).
3. Sending emails without a clear purpose. Whether your email is a simple, “thanks!” that probably isn’t necessary or a PSA-style announcement to “over-communicate” info that’s already well-known, unnecessary email tops the list of annoying work behavior. Check in with yourself about the subject and what you hope to get back before you press send. The people you work with will definitely appreciate having less in their inbox.
4. Interrupting your teammates. As you probably know from the painful viewing of the presidential debates (yikes) or unfortunate, in-person experiences, interruptions are just the WORST. Not only is jumping in or talking over someone else rude, but doing so can actually cause your teammates to perceive conflict. If your interruptions stem from excitement or cool ideas you just can’t wait to share, get in the habit of jotting them down and waiting your turn. It’ll make a huge difference!
5. Super obvious bragging or gloating. Celebrating wins is really important, but be careful to do it with tact to avoid unintentionally coming off as annoying, self-centered or a show-off. Practice humility and master the #humblebrag to shine in a way that gets you the attention, respect and kudos you rightfully deserve, without the eye rolls.
6. Sharing #TMI. Becoming friends with your teammates is totally cool, and there’s definitely nothing wrong with dishing the deets about the networking events you attend or how you’ve spent the weekend (provided you keep it classy). But check your personal drama, weird health issues and other personal stuff at the door to avoid accidentally sharing too much info (AKA #TMI). Sticking within professional boundaries when it comes to sharing is a legit way to avoid awkwardness or causing people to see you in the wrong light.