Everyone has experienced the dreaded moment when you’ve invited someone over to help with a project or meeting. Sure, they seem like a great fit and everyone seems excited about their involvement. However, they just can’t seem to get on with you. It can be frustrating, but there are some things that you can do to make it easier on yourself in the long run. There will always be people who just aren’t right for any given situation. However, it doesn’t mean that you have to continue ignoring them and hoping that eventually, they will warm up to your company. Here we look at some of the best tips on how you can deal with difficult workers and get the most out of their time working alongside you!
1. Take time for everyone to cool off
There will be times where heads clash. It can be over personality differences, or a work event. Whatever it is, now is not always the best time to resolve the issue. Both you and the other person will be stressed and your mental thought process will be filled with anger, annoyance and hurtful feelings. It can be best to take how ever long to calm down and defuse the thoughts in your head. Sure these may be justified, but both parties are not going to be in a state of reconciliation with feelings so fresh. So take some time to revisit the event to then discuss with a level head. By then your own feelings could have changed, as you stop the thoughts from living inside your head. Accept that there are personality traits that will annoy you, and other workers will have these. You have to deal with these people, so accept it, and find ways to control it.
Think past the awkward situations and focus on the positive of what is being achieved by their involvement.
Their attitude could have been caused by an external event, a personal problem that has raised its head recently, and caused their whole persona to change.
They might just have a really bad personal attitude which is not affecting the quality of the work they achieve. So you need to accept this, to then allow the quality of work to proceed. This can be hard, but if you focus on the work output, if may make sense. That is a judgement call you need to make, but whatever, do not sit and fester on their attitude. Get yourself busy on something else to lift your mind.
Sometimes you don't get the choice of who you are with, so use these techniques to remove the mental stress of it.
2. Show them the ropes
You might have had a specific plan in mind for when people are involved in your projects, but it can be really helpful to let them know what they’re doing. Maybe there is a step that you didn’t realise you were skipping over or a certain tool that you want them to be able to use. Let them know! It can be really easy to get swept up in a project and forget to mention something that you know would be helpful to your team member. Give them a quick overview and let them know if there is anything specific that you would like them to be aware of. It might seem like a small thing, but it can make all the difference.
3. Plan ahead
Planning doesn’t just mean handing out a weekly outline of what is going to happen to the job. It should be apparent that you have a plan, but that you want to make sure that everyone involved is letting go of their preconceived notions. Planning can also mean letting people know exactly what they can expect from you. While you might want to be hands-off, it can be really helpful to let team members know what you need from them. For example, if you are organising a project where a lot of different people will be involved, you might want to let them know that you need to know who is doing what and when. If someone gets busy and you need to know about this, it can be really helpful to let them know ahead of time.
4. Communicate clearly and often
Make it very clear from the beginning that you want to be clear and consistent with your communication. It can be tempting to avoid communication altogether when it comes to project work. However, this is going to hurt your team members, as well as yourself in the end. If you are likely to get frustrated with your team members, you are going to find it a lot harder to get anything done. It is better to raise issues and communicate with your team members. If you do find yourself in a tense situation, take a step back and try to see it from their perspective. Remember that you are both trying to achieve the same goal.
5. Build strong relationships with your team members
It is really important to get to know your team members. It can be really easy to just assume that you know who they are and what they are capable of. However, you need to make an effort to get to know the people that you’ll be working with regularly. This doesn’t mean that you need to be friends with them, but it should be possible to get to know them better. Being able to set yourself up for success when it comes to working with your team members can be really helpful. This doesn’t mean that you have to be the best friend in the world, but it should be possible for you to feel a connection with them.
6. Don’t micromanage
It can be tempting to try to micromanage your team members. This can be tempting when you feel like you know what they are capable of, but it is really important to just let them get on with their jobs. If you find yourself getting a little bit too hands-on, try to step back and remember that you and your team members are trying to achieve the same goal. It can be really helpful to let them know that you have an idea of where they are going and what they are trying to achieve.
7. Know where the line is when it comes to feedback
It can be really easy to push the boundaries when it comes to giving feedback. Just because you are giving a team member feedback, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to be negative about it. When it comes to giving feedback, it can be really helpful to let your team members know exactly what you want. This can be helpful for both parties. It can be really helpful to let team members know exactly what you expect from them in terms of the work that they are responsible for. It can also be really helpful to let them know what you expect from you as well.
8. Be Flexible When It Comes to Timing
It can be frustrating when you are expecting someone to get something done and they just can’t make it happen at the specific time that you had in mind. It can be really helpful to be flexible with your timing. For example, if you have someone who is supposed to be working on a project, it can be helpful to let them know that you will be happy to work around their time. It can be really helpful to just let people know that your time is their time. It can be really helpful to put things in terms of time and not in terms of what you want from someone. For example, you may have a deadline, but you don’t want it to be rushed. It can be really helpful to put deadlines in terms of time.
9. Stay organised at all times
Be organised when it comes to project work. It can be frustrating when you find yourself being disorganised, especially when the project that you were working on was really important. Keep everything organised. This can include emails, tools, papers, etc. It can also include project documentation such as checklists, timesheets, and so on. It can be really helpful to have everything in one place. This will make it easier for your team members to find what they need when they need it.
10. Set boundaries and stick to them
It can be frustrating when someone pushes the boundaries that you had set. Let people know exactly what the boundaries are. For example, if someone is talking too much, or if they are being too hand-holding with their work, let them know that this isn’t acceptable. It can be really helpful to let team members know exactly what you want from them.
Conclusion
Project work isn't always easy, it can be frustrating when you've invited someone over to help and they just can't get on with it. These tips on how to deal with difficult workers should help you get the most out of their time working with you. It can be really helpful to show your team members the ropes, plan ahead, communicate clearly and often, build strong relationships with your team members, don't micromanage, and know where the line is when it comes to feedback. Be Flexible When It Comes to Timing. It can be really helpful to set boundaries and stick to them, and give everyone time to cool off when situations arise. Project work isn't always easy, it can be frustrating when you've invited someone over to help and they just can't get it done.
