5 Difficult Personality Types You May Encounter at Work and How to Deal with Them

Going to work usually means having to deal with people. For introverts like myself that alone can be a challenge; add to it the fact that some people come with difficult personality types, and you may find yourself feeling like that lady on the picture, dodging knives every day. No, I'm not talking about being a customer service rep (I have no idea how those survive); I am talking about dealing with coworkers.

Some of unpleasant or difficult types you may encounter are:

Rude / Bullies (absolutely hate those);

Whiners (harmless but annoying);

Procrastinators (not necessarily unpleasant but will affect your performance);

Anti-Social (usually good workers but can be hard to deal with);

Helpless (can't or will not learn).

Let us take a closer look at these, one by one. Rude people, or Bullies, are the hardest to deal with, at least they are for me. For some reason, they think they can take out their anger on others, and they are very good at picking their victims. In other words, they know who will put up with their abuse and who will not. There are several ways to deal with a bully at work. One: you can avoid conflict by swallowing the insults; needless to say, this will make you a constant target. Two: you can complain to the boss; this may bring temporary relief, but may also result in retaliation. Three: you can stand up for yourself. Hard as it is for someone mild-tempered and soft-spoken, this is the best way to solve a bully problem. A simple phrase like "Stop talking to me like this," said firmly, will send a clear message.

Whiners who always have something to complain about are also good at picking their targets. If you listen to them, they will gripe. While this will not necessarily affect your performance, it can eventually wear you out. Repeated, ongoing complaints that really cannot be helped are especially tiring. A good way to hint that you've heard enough is, "Well, as we all know, nothing can be done about this." Not supporting the gripes will also let the whiner know that it is time to look for a different audience.

Procrastinators can actually be very nice people. They will not refuse to do what you ask from them, but they will keep putting it off. Unless you are the boss, you can't fire them for this annoying trait, so you will have to find a way around it. Usually, there is a reason for procrastinating; the person is probably putting off a certain task because there is some hidden difficulty they do not want to face. Try to find out what the problem is and help them overcome it, if you can. This will get the job done.

Anti-Social people tend to focus on their work, not communication with others. For that reason, they are usually good workers, but if you do need to communicate with them in order to get your job done, you run into difficulties. One thing to remember is that most anti-social people are the way they are because of shyness, not because they dislike you. Try to help them out by taking initiative. Instead of waiting for them to offer you information you need, ask questions. If their "yes" or "no" answers are not helpful, form your questions in such a way that requires a more detailed reply. You probably won't be able to turn them into a chatterbox, but you will get the cooperation you need.

Helpless people want you to do their work for them. While every newly hired person has a legitimate learning period during which they might need some assistance, there are also those who prefer not to learn, or not to learn too well, and have other people "help" them. Very often, they are clever manipulators that know exactly what buttons to push. Whatever part of their work they find difficult, unpleasant, or dull, they will try to find a way to make somebody else do it. If you can't say no, they will saddle you and have a nice long ride. Just like with a bully, you need firmness to deal with this. "Here, I will show you once more, for the last time," should send the message. When they come again with the same problem, remind them what you had said before.