Lessons from a Toxic Work Relationship
Summary
It’s hard to collaborate with clients when some stakeholders continue to move the goalpost on deliverables, consistently contradict their own decisions, and ignore your advice as a consultant. This brand of toxic behavior can have adverse effects on your quality of work, cause strain on professional relationships, and ultimately result in a weaker product or service for your users. Senior Experience Designer Darian Davis will share what he’s learned navigating a previous toxic work relationship, and along the way, uncover the tools to help you navigate, alleviate, and improve toxic work relationships of your own.
Key Insights
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Preconceptions about difficult coworkers can bias your approach before you even meet them.
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Physical and emotional depletion can be signs of toxic workplace relationships.
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Observing behaviors and asking targeted questions can reveal underlying concerns that aren't initially communicated.
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Appealing to a stakeholder’s best interest—such as meeting their deadline pressures—can build trust and rapport.
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Creating a clear, visual roadmap with checkpoints helps align stakeholders and reduces anxiety over deadlines.
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Regularly reviewing and documenting decisions in meetings enforces accountability and limits scope creep.
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Holding stakeholders accountable does not require confrontation but consistent gentle reminders through records.
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Toxic behaviors often stem from external or internal pressures no one else knows about.
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Acknowledging and owning one’s toxic behaviors is the first step to improving team dynamics.
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Working with a trusted mentor or accountability partner helps in sustaining behavior change and improvement.
Notable Quotes
"When fellow co-workers label an individual as difficult, it's hard not to treat that individual as a problem."
"I felt on edge and physically depleted after our interactions."
"By observing Jeff's concerns and asking questions, I was able to show empathy and distract myself from getting defensive."
"If you’re generating buy-in, don’t forget what it will mean for your difficult stakeholders—they may have external pressures you don’t know about."
"Creating a roadmap built enough space to make meaningful design changes for developers to implement."
"Reviewing decisions out loud held everyone accountable and made it harder for Jeff to forget or change his mind."
"It takes at least one member of a team to choose to set healthy standards for collaboration."
"We’re all capable of creating and perpetuating toxic work relationships."
"A common toxic behavior is glory seeking, like presenting work as your own when it was a team effort."
"Taking responsibility for our behaviors starts with an apology and continues with regular feedback and action."
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