Toxic Traits in the Workplace
“After eight years as a doctor, I have taken a break from the profession I love. I am too emotionally exhausted to continue my training….I have felt voiceless and powerless due to an insidious culture of bullying and harassment within our hospitals...there comes a point in time where simply "toughing it out" isn't an option anymore.”
These are excerpts from an article written by Kate Johnson for ABC news. In the article she talks about her experiences as a junior doctor and the culture of tolerating toxic behavior in the hospital.
Having worked in the hospital for many years, sadly, I know that such a culture exists among healthcare professionals, especially doctors. Because of this, so many junior doctors, like Kate Johnson, often experience burnout to the point that they do not have the motivation to pursue their dream and the profession they love.
The root cause of this bullying culture is often TOXIC BEHAVIORS. Here are some points that you can reflect on:
5 common traits of a toxic person
Sometimes we do not realize that people around us are exhibiting toxic traits which can make dealing with them difficult and exhausting. Usually, a toxic person brings you down than up because:
They blame everything on you. One of the most prominent traits of a toxic person is that they find no fault in themselves. They tend to blame all the problems on everyone else.
You always have to prove yourself to them. Toxic people love proving you wrong, which leads to your urge to always defend yourself.
They won’t take NO for an answer. They often disrespect the boundaries you set.
They tend to be pretentious and unpredictable.They love turning things around to benefit them, making you apologize for things you haven’t done.
They manipulate your feelings. Toxic people are emotional manipulators. They start making you feel guilty or lead you to overthink everything.
5 ways to deal with toxic people
Now that we know how a toxic person behaves, our initial reaction is to automatically avoid them. However, there are instances that we cannot simply do that. Thus, there are some things that we can do to prevent the negative effects of their actions.
Start with taking care of yourself. The best way to deal with toxic people is to make sure that you are feeling positive, confident, healthy, etc.
Keep in mind that they may not care how this affects you and they only think about themselves.
Do not let them drag you down. You won’t be of help to anyone if you drown yourself in the toxic mindset as well.
Learn to establish boundaries.
At the end of the day, do not give them any space in your head.
5 questions to assess your own toxic traits
We may not realize it but we might also be exhibiting toxic traits ourselves. However, if we are able to identify these, we can take action to prevent ourselves from becoming the toxic person.
Start with: Do you regularly evaluate yourself and your habits? Check how honest you are about your own behaviors so that you can answer the next questions appropriately.
Are you often pessimistic? No one likes a negative nancy. For you, it might just be about being realistic, but learn to balance everything.
Do you tend to judge other people when they approach you or ask for your help? It’s okay to give constructive criticism but if you’re stressing over the miniscule things that don’t define a person’s character, it’s better to recognize this and learn when to stop.
Have you ever invalidated someone’s emotions? This is called gaslighting when someone opens up to you and you immediately dismiss their feelings as an exaggeration.
Are you consistent with your behavior and emotions? Inconsistency can be one of the traits of a toxic person. Don’t say one thing but do another.
Reference Articles:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-11-02/bullying-in-medicine-policies-do-not-change-culture/11980240
https://medium.com/@rtaori60/10-traits-of-toxic-people-d05407830a50
https://www.payscale.com/career-news/2017/09/10-tips-dealing-toxic-people-work