I don’t recommend having a bad attitude at work. It is miserable. You’re miserable and consequently, you make everyone around you miserable. But this is a brief guide in how to survive and get away with it until you can find another job. (This is not an indefinite strategy. It never is.)
For many years I worked in utter misery doing technical support and dealing with the public. Granted it was a select public of our clients, but it really was no better than retail work. You had to deal with whatever level of crazy was on the other end of the phone with a smile and patience.
I hated those 2 jobs with a passion. I had a bad attitude every day because I had clients tell me I was a liar & routinely got thrown under the bus by the salespeople. I cried on the way home from work daily because it so was awful. I got testy with everyone around me because I was the client’s advocate and no one was listening. I swam upstream daily. The problem was brought home to me a year or two after I left the second miserable job, when my co-worker (who had worked with me at that second firm) said to me at the office, “You seem a lot happier now.”
It’s a wonder that I wasn’t fired. I know that I had some fairy godmothers looking out for me in the way of management, but that kind of luck only lasts for so long. After that, you have to back up your bad attitude with actual work.
I bring this up because I’m watching a trainwreck at the office right now and these are the top 4 things she’s doing wrong mixed in with my experiences:
1. Don’t be openly insubordinate, i.e. rude. Even if you don’t like it, don’t question your boss in front of your peers. Don’t roll your eyes at things they say. Don’t stand around with a defensive position, i.e. avoid folding your arms across your chest unless you have a stain on your shirt. Talk to your boss in private if you have something confrontational to say. It’s not fair to undermine them in front of their other minions in meetings. Address your concerns privately and diplomatically. It’s ok to be candid, just use some judgment deciding when it’s appropriate.
2. Try to be pleasant to other people as much as possible. Despite not enjoying the job, try to make some friends. See above. As much as I hated doing support work, I actually made some really close friends at work and I was able to bring them with me to my happy place. This girl just does not smile or say hello to anyone else in the building. She’s a cipher and no one has anything nice to say about her because she doesn’t open up at all. (The flipside is that they don’t have anything bad to say either other than she is unfriendly. But that’s not a good thing.) I asked her once if she had friends at other companies and she told me that she really didn’t. I can sure as hell guess why. I joke that I hate whatever job I’m doing, but at least I’m nice to other people and smile at them so at least they think I’m a nice.
3. Perform to the highest standard. If you are going to have a crappy attitude on the job, at least have the chops to be a superstar. It is possible to be a consistently high performer and still be a sour puss. Don’t let lazy performance be an excuse to get sacked at the first opportunity. Eventually your bad attitude will become tiresome and they will let you go because of it. Don’t give them the opportunity by doing bottom of the barrel work. Or else it could be a client that asks you to be fired. Thankfully, that didn’t happen to me, but to a friend. In all my years of tech support, I put up good numbers when they counted. My clients liked me and gave customer service improved scores after I took over their account and my company gave me raises and bonuses because the work spoke for itself.
4. Dress appropriately. Have you ever heard the phrase “Dress for the job you want?” Or how about “Think Yiddish. Dress British?” I watch this girl at work wear flip flops every day in the summer and I cannot stand it. At minimum, dress modestly and have good hygiene. Having body glitter on at the office is probably a bad idea. Either you overdid the makeup or you were out the night before sans shower. (This was a guy before me. The manager had to remind him to bathe before coming to work. I thought the manager was kidding when he told me this, but it was confirmed later by another co-worker.) This girl did have the common sense to dress formally for a meeting with account managers this week, but she needs to spruce it up at the field office more often. Every time there is a fashion faux pas list mentioned, she’s on it.
Finally, the last tip I have is get a resume ready. Having a handy resume and putting it out there for a job search can often make a crappy work environment bearable. Because it’s not always about you. I will admit, sometimes, it is the place you work. But if it’s not the right fit, then get the heck out of there! What are you waiting for?
Any other words of advice for making the best of a bad attitude at work?
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One must have an excellent work ethic to be able to perform to the highest standard with a bad attitude. I’ve got a lousy attitude right now and it’s so hard to be motivated to even do a passable job!
Honestly, number 3 is the best advice you can give in that situation. I was in a situation like that, but I really tried to go above and beyond my job description because I knew this wasn’t my career, it was just a job. If anything, it secured me an excellent recommendation for my new role as my boss wasn’t aware that I was miserable, but appreciated the quality of work I gave her.
Not to take part in your earlier job misery but this is a good post.
I think the very first step is deciding whether your bad attitude is due to your current job or if you just don’t have the coping skills needed to handle ANY job. Most jobs you will have to deal with some pressure, people who you deem as incompetent, deadlines etc.
If your bad attitude follows you from job to job than that’s probably a good sign it’s you or maybe you are just in the wrong industry.
Agree with @Rachelle … if you try and go above and beyond, people notice and that is a good thing.
People with bad attitudes at work and that are extremely resentful towards the company are just ZERO fun to be around. Everyday is the same depressing story “i hate work..” blah blah blah. While I am like this alot, I smack myself when I see it developing and try and snap out of it.
Misery always finds company, dont find it at work, find a self-help group if you hate your job that much. Gotta make money somehow.
True story:
There was a guy, let’s call him Rick, because that’s his name. He’s in the media business. He screwed up a story SO badly that it libeled a very wealthy and very angry person. Rather than risk losing a multimillion-dollar lawsuit, the publishers decided to keep him on the payroll and give him regular raises despite doing no work, and, most importantly, shield him from lawsuits and process servers. That, they decided was far cheaper than to cut him free where he’d flip over at the first deposition and rat out his bosses.
Moral of the story: If you screw up badly enough at work, you can have permanent employment.
I’m not sure dressing professionally will help you get away with a bad attitude.
I think its very hard to fake it if you don’t like your job, it seems people see through it. I was working at a law firm last summer and I disliked the fact that I was working with one associate all the time. I always behaved in a pleasant manner, dressed appropriately, and did my best on projects but despite this the associate I worked with on my review said I need to be more enthusiastic about my work. It seems faking to convince other people is pretty difficult.
I just thinking working hard and getting the job done really helps. I think you can “fake” it if you can see some light at the end of the tunnel. Bad jobs or at least jobs you hate make you take better notice of a good job when it comes along. Do the best work you can & you might even get bumped up the ladder. I think this is a great post and I am going to stumble it now.
I’ve found that I can make jobs I hate bearable if I can develop a positive attitude or behave as if I’m happy–not for the long-term, but one day at a time. Still feel miserable when the day’s over, dread going in, but manage not to be as miserable the whole time.
Fortunately, my current position makes me happy most of the time.
I have to imagine technical support is one of the world’s worst jobs. Hence, congrats to you for lasting so long!