Beware The Energy-Sucking Idiot: How to Deal with Difficult Coworkers

If there is anything more frustrating than working in an office full of coworkers who seem to know it all, it's working in an office full of coworkers who seem to know too little - about their jobs, their responsibilities, and the established social norms of a civilized society, not to mention the professional workplace.

Five years ago, while working for E! Entertainment Television, I interviewed reality television mega producer Mark Burnett. In my interview with Burnett, the creator of Survivor shared his belief that aspiring professionals in any field must always beware the "energy-sucking idiots." According to Burnett, this less-than-complimentary description fits anyone who drains the focus, passion, and vitality of others.

Unfortunately, these unique individuals inhabit offices both large and small all throughout the global workforce. And although they take on a variety of different forms - much like the liquid metal Cyborg from Terminator 2 - these difficult office dwellers ultimately have the potential to terminate our sanity as they steadily slow our progress and diffuse our focus.

Spotting an Energy-Sucking Idiot

Similar to the process by which comedian Jeff Foxworthy determines if one is a redneck, there is no shortage of warning signs that one is an energy-sucking idiot.

If, for example, you blabber incessantly and can't lend an open ear to anything, you might be an energy-sucking idiot. If you can never meet deadlines and always derail others' projects in the process, you might be an energy-sucking idiot. If you bad-mouth any idea that didn't spring full bloom from your brow, you might be an energy-sucking idiot.

Needless to say, the same holds true for those who constantly bicker, interrupt, or infuse other verbal and non-verbal distractions into the workplace.

Sadly, we all know more than a few individuals who neatly fall into this unattractive category of coworkers or, even worse, employers. And although changing a person's set ways or longstanding flaws is never easy - or even possible for that matter - learning to deal with difficult colleagues in our midst is, indeed, a realistic and obtainable goal.

Build a Buffoon Buffer

Coping with the energy-sucking idiots that share our workspace requires building buffers between their actions and our work. Whether the "buffer" means politely setting ground rules or blatantly cutting yourself off from the irritating behavior, there are steps that can and should be taken to mitigate stress and minimize distractions.

• Tag 'em and bag 'em

Simply ignoring the energy-sucking idiots at your office won't remove the anxiety they cause or eliminate the interruptions they create. Instead, make a conscious effort to identify the situations in which your bothersome coworkers are at their most upsetting, distracting, or irritating. Proceed to find subtle ways of limiting your exposure to or interaction with those individuals in these situations.

• Don't provoke the behavior you wish to avoid

To be polite and circumvent hurt feelings, we often patiently wait for the office chatterbox to complete his story about a funny thing that happened at taxidermy class. Although being a respectful, attentive listener is vital in the workplace, when you have a project to complete or a report to finish, it is perfectly acceptable to excuse yourself from such a "riveting" story so that you can finish your work. By not allowing your coworker to flap his lips to the detriment of your deadline, you have politely extricated yourself from an uncomfortable situation (unless of course you're genuinely fascinated by taxidermy) and safeguarded your focus from a nagging workplace distraction. In doing so, you've also effectively placed a buffer between you and your coworker that won't soon be forgotten. Storytellers, after all, only dwell in places were stories are welcome.

• Keep it professional

As one who has occasionally faced temptation to adopt the behavior of an energy-sucking idiot in order to get rid of one, it's important to demand the same professionalism of ourselves that we demand of others. When an annoying colleague intentionally or unintentionally aggravates you to the point where some corrective response is warranted, be sure that the action you take - whether it be speaking directly with your coworker or voicing a complaint to management - is handled with utmost professionalism. Any move you make that resembles the behavior of an energy-sucking idiot classifies you as one of the same.

• Avoid blowback

Blowback is the espionage term for the unintended consequences of an action taken. If, for example, you respond to an annoying coworker by sending memos up the chain of command about your frustrations, you could very well be branded a "weak link" on the team who is incapable of "playing well with others." Your endeavor to improve working conditions for all could instead have the opposite effect. If workplace frustrations escalate to the point where voicing a complaint is necessary, attempt to wrangle several other coworkers who share your frustrations and collectively voice them to management.

• Confront the problem and its cause

Although there comes a time when supervisors have to intervene in problematic situations, it is always preferable to initially take your complaint directly to the cause of it. When a difficult colleague provokes stress, take immediate steps to address the situation with the person. By leaving these concerns unaddressed and allowing bothersome behaviors to ulcerate like an open wound, it will only compound and intensify in the future. If you can, nip it in the bud the first chance you get.

• The Ugly Truth

Although it is far from a pleasant thought to entertain, there are times when we unwittingly become the dreaded energy-sucking idiot - a scenario born of our openness to critiquing everyone else's shortcomings but never our own.

Yet as Mark Twain once famously mused, "Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." By holding ourselves to the highest standards of professionalism possible, we hold the energy-sucking idiots in our presence to the same.

With a diverse professional background ranging from entertainment to economics, Michael Essany has a distinguished track record of managing exciting projects and inspiring people. Michael comes to OfficeArrow as a bestselling author and former broadcast personality from E! Entertainment Television. With better than a decade of management and mass communications experience to his name, Michael has never been more passionate about the power of innovative leadership techniques and finding new ways to educate and inspire through the written word.