This thing is happening in the workplace, around the world, everywhere, increasingly frequently nowadays. Especially when you start dreading going to work. That means that it’s already a bad sign that something is not right there. You might feel intimidated by your supervisor or your peers. It could result from mistrust in the past of colleagues, jealousy, vengeance, and inferiority conflict from peers and others or just from anything at all. One co-worker could be envious of another. Another might hold a grudge against a colleague.
And how do we manage to work with colleagues that we virtually despise? It’s not an easy task to do. Maybe the answer is to facilitate our working environment. We must put our personal feelings aside and put up our best performance. Try to feel indifferent.
When we think twice about what we re going to say to our superior then that is a sign of intimidation – the fear of being let go, fired. If we are late coming in, we always look around wondering if someone noticed when we came in.
And what about “back-stabbing”? Saying one thing to a co-worker, then turning around and saying something else about that particular person to another.
Do you feel very insecure when your supervisor or a boss from another department approaches you? Insecure, unsure of yourself (always wondering if you have done something wrong), and uneasy emotional feeling.
How often does it happen when you find yourself explaining your actions when you don’t want to or don’t even have to (when you are not asked)? How do you feel after that? And after responding, you probably wonder if you did the right thing.
Occasionally you might have also noticed you are being closely monitored and checked up by your peers, and again that inner anxiety emerges. You subconsciously ask yourself, “why does it have to happen to me?
Here are some points/suggestions to keep in mind when feeling frustrated, stressed and insecure
- Don’t Take Work Too Seriously
To avoid all these unnecessary frustrations, we must stop talking about everything to heart. And the most important thing is not to take work very seriously. Try to leave work where it’s supposed to be – at work. Don’t take it home. You’ll just get yourself overstressed and hurt your loved ones in the process.
- Enjoy your work
Try finding a job which you like and enjoy doing.
- Be polite, but assertive
Try to interact with others in the office. Be on a friendly basis with everybody at work.
- Don’t let yourself be pushed around
Don’t be pressured into doing something you don’t want to do. Don’t be afraid to say “NO”.
- Be positive, compliment your fellow workers
Always be polite. Utilize words such as “please” and “thank you”. Compliment your co-workers on their appearances, their work performances, etc.
- Don’t feel that you must stay at that job
Work methods are not always fair. What’s good for one person might not necessarily be good for another.
- Try to learn from every job you are in
Try to get as much knowledge and expertise as you possibly can from your job. It will benefit you in the future.
Temperament
General characteristics of an individual in a workplace can either be positive or create total insecurity for others depending on one’s disposition. An unpredictable manager, an easily irritable person, and excessively intuitive person with insecurity in them, a person with domestic problems and so, can often become a cause for insecurity in others, particularly in subordinates, and all those that may not be familiar with that individual.
Unfortunately, this is a cause of insecurity that is often unavoidable or can only be prevented if staff interact more socially as a work team, out of the workplace, and get to know each other’s level of tolerance and general character. This would prevent a lot of misunderstanding between co-workers that often brings out unexpected behavior.
Age
Restructuring of many state economies, recessions along with technological changes more than often create job insecurities. Many middle managers and senior managers find themselves threatened by lay-offs at the age of 40 and over, which many employers tend to regard as a down trend age bracket in terms of productivity and sometimes even seen as a greater insurance risk, and not a long-term company asset.
Established Hierarchy
Established hierarchy breeds insecurity in the workplace particularly for your junior workers joining an organization where there is already an established hierarchy. Established hierarchy often prevents junior workers (college or university graduates) from using their skills and ideas in the workplace. The established management hierarchy will often reject new ideas from a junior, out of fear of being seen or viewed as incapable of management or being old-fashioned, particularly by junior staff who may be better educated. The outcome is total frustration for the junior worker and a feeling of rejection.
This often translates into a young transient work force moving from job to job in search of job satisfaction. AT the same time, senior persons in an established hierarchy always feel insecure due to the possibility of being replaced or challenged by juniors, although often unintended, but construed to be so.
Technology
Modern technology in the workplace is intended to increase efficiency and productivity. And indeed, it has in so many areas, however along with efficiency it has brought about a sense of insecurity among senior managers, who, due to development trends, reached senior levels of management before office automation i.e. use of computers in all levels of management, modern forms of communication, etc. whose labor-intensive work methods were being phased out.
In the process, senior managers find themselves “in a technological web” that they don’t understand and by which they are also intimidated. This evokes a fear of technology and sometimes a total rejection on their part, although modern management methods and current worldwide trend continue to demand modernization of the workplace and the application of modern technology. This creates a sense of insecurity as another technologically literate and skilled generation of junior managers emerges.
There are normally three reactions to these changes by senior managers.
- The brave will often sacrifice a bit of pride and go back to learning some office automation skills to be in a position to manage and comfortably delegate responsibility to junior management without fear of technology intimidation.
- Others refuse to hire highly skilled office assistants with excellent office techniques. This is normally due to fear of being replaced.
- Regarding blue-collar workers, insecurity grows as more industries begin to adapt modern technology to become more productive, cut productive costs, increase efficiency and complete in the marketplace. The trend or process is very painful and sometimes bitter.
