Lazy Co-workers
“A lazy person is as bad as someone who destroys things.” Proverbs 18:9 (NLT)
At every job, you have two types of people: HARD WORKERS and HARD SLACKERS. People who go the extra mile and people who do the bare minimum. It’s nothing more frustrating than having co-workers who are lazy and don’t pull their load. It puts more stress and work responsibility on the ones who are actually doing the job. Lazy co-workers can destroy the morale of hard workers. We’ve all been in a situation where we’ve been affected by certain individuals’ choices to goof off rather than just do their job. How can we deal with lazy co-workers?
How To Deal With Lazy Co-workers…
- PICK THEIR BRAIN
I had a young lady on my team who was lazy. She would disappear, do what she wanted and left the rest of the work for everyone else. It left everyone including myself frustrated. Instead of giving into the temptation of gossiping about her or going off, I simply picked her brain. In other words, I tried to see things from her perspective. I talked to her and asked her jokingly what her least favorite thing was to do on the job. Then she revealed her dislikes about the job and why she was behaving the way she was. Management was an issue and she wanted something different. It was starting to make sense. Try to see why your co-worker is slacking. Are they having any personal issues? Are they having family struggles? Is something going on at work behind the scenes? You never know what someone is going through. Seek to understand.
2. DON’T ENABLE THEM
Stop enabling them to be lazy. If you continue to pick up the slack and do their job for them, they’ll just keep doing whatever they want. Eventually they must be held accountable.
3. TALK TO THEM
Have a private conversation with the individual. Let them know how they’re affecting the team and what they can improve on. Don’t attack them. Approach them as a loving friend. If the conversation doesn’t help, talk to your manager. Your manager has probably noticed it and has received complaints from other teammates. Trust them to help you resolve the issue.
4. REFUSE TO BE INFLUENCED
Don’t be influenced by your lazy co-workers. Don’t let their poor work ethics change your good work ethics. You keep doing a good job. You keep working hard. Your dedication will pay off even when it looks like it’s gone unnoticed.
Picking their brain, refusing to enable them, talking to them or a manager and continuing to be unchanged are some ways to deal with lazy co-workers. Don’t let your co-workers discourage you. It’s frustrating at times but you keep leading by example. Show God you’re grateful for your job in spite of your Lazy Co-workers.
