Tick Tock Tick Tock – You’re Taking Too Long

It’s exasperating to work with someone who suffers from analysis paralysis. I worked with someone like this. When he wrote an email it included more information than anyone wanted, needed, or had time to read. Time seemed to move more slowly for him. Yeah, he was difficult to work with. Anyone who works with someone

Nice People Can’t be Trusted … or Can They?

It’s suspect to work with someone who is too nice. I worked with someone like this. She wanted to be everyone’s best friend. To her own detriment she avoided sharing her opinion. Yeah, she was difficult to work with. You might be thinking what could be wrong with being nice? It is a fair question.

Look at ME! Look at ME!

It’s annoying to work with someone who demands the spotlight. I worked with someone like this. She acted like she was an expert at everything. Not to mention taking credit for others’ work and hijacking conversations. Yeah, she was difficult to work with. In their book Dealing with People You Can’t Stand, authors Brinkman and

Get Out of My Way!

It’s maddening to work with someone who runs you over because their goals are more important than anyone else’s. I worked with someone like this. He was controlling. He talked over me and others in meetings and rolled his eyes when I made suggestions. Not to mention saying things like, “We don’t have time to

How to Enjoy Conflict

Uncomfortable. Scary. Difficult. Challenging. Time-consuming. Fight. Adversarial. Loud. Exhausting. That is a list of words I heard last week when I asked a team this question - What are two words that come to mind when you think of conflict? Maybe you feel the same. Maybe you are wondering how you could ever enjoy conflict.

Finding Inspiration with Max Lucado

Closed door. Hushed voice. Gossip. Cornered in an office. Put on the spot. My coworker unloading their annoyances about our coworker. I’m the newest person on the team. Expected to take sides. Slippery slope. Placed between a rock and a hard place. “Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional.” ~Max Lucado When I came across

Ghosting a Coworker: Not Recommended

Are you ghosting a coworker? Let’s talk about this thing called “ghosting”.  (Thank you to my niece Jessi by the way for the idea this week.)  Have you heard of it?  If you haven’t heard of ghosting, let me explain.  Ghosting is when two people are dating and suddenly one of them ends all communication

Conflict and Perfection: Get it right

Conflict and Perfection: what's it all about?  It's certainly not about the hokey pokey! Welcome back to our final week on conflict using this book …. We end the series with the person whose intent is to get it right because they need perfection.  For these people it is easy to be thrown off when

Conflict and Approval: Getting Along

Conflict and Approval: who needs it?  The answer to that question is ... a lot of people!  Some people, when feeling threatened, are going to try to get along at almost any cost because they really want to feel your approval.  They are wonderful people who really prefer it when things are peaceful in the

Conflict and Appreciation: Giving it

Conflict and appreciation: an interesting pair!  There are people, who when feeling threatened, are going to try to get you to show your appreciation for them, because they have a need for attention.  Lots and lots of attention sometimes!  Brinkman and Kirschner describe this behavior as requiring "a higher level of assertiveness and a people focus, in