Toxic workplaces are a constant source of stress for almost all involved but they often don’t appear in the cartoonish fashion we have all come to expect from media representations and, well, articles just like this one.
We all have employment rights now and near-constant media examples of power gone awry so very few of us have to work for long under a screaming bully of a boss or keep a blow up mattress under the desk for the deadline periods (as one friend of mine did in his job!).
However, if you’re a generally resilient person who is beginning to feel the mild nausea and constant pressure then maybe you haven’t realised the impact of your environment, or just how toxic the place around you is.
Here are 10 signs you are working in a toxic environment.
When you say 'I can't do that' I can't help but smile.
Because I know that that's not what you mean.
You mean one of two things;
I’ve been prepared for battle since I was small.
I was always ready to fight my corner, to stand up for the people who couldn’t. Even when I was beaten and bruised I still got back up and tried to fight a new way.
It was the desperate need to fight for what was right that first led me to law. I was a child in the middle of a battlefield and the lawyers led the way out. Made sense from the chaos. Created peace where there had been none.
I instinctively knew I wanted to be one of them because these were people who fixed broken things, found solutions to problems my tiny brain had no clue how to solve.
Somehow I equated being able to solve a problem with being problem-free.
Prolific. It’s a word that terrifies me.
I laugh at people who refrain from using swear words, who say it’s unprofessional or uncouth.
‘It’s just a plain Anglo-Saxon term’ I snigger. ‘It’s just a word, don’t be so silly’
But the thought of being prolific terrifies me.
I’ve been reading this morning and getting so fired up, so ready to rock the entire professional world, that I immediately felt the need to shrink back down.
Up came the old beliefs and speeches, echoed back through my history
‘Who are you to do that’
‘Who do you think you are, you’re nobody’
‘You don’t deserve support, you don’t deserve protection, you don’t deserve love’
‘You’re nothing more than a child with an overactive imagination’
You know the ‘f’ word that terrifies me more than any use of the word ‘fuck’ could?
I feel like I need to preface this blog with the unfortunate truth that, even all these years into my burnout and imposter syndrome journey, life is not perfect. I’m not always on top of things. I’m not always healthy. I still often feel like I’m flying by the seat of my pants but it’s more exhilarating than terrifying. Most of the time at least.
I’m sorry, I would love to give you the magic button solution but I’ve yet to become a charlatan.
So here’s the thing.
