By Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter
Toxic work environments are real and more commonplace than I care to say – I hear about them often in my line of work.
People aren’t always wanting to simply move on to a higher level or more highly compensated role; they often just want OUT of their acidic environments led by uproarious bosses who say things like, “You all are replaceable,” and refer to their staff as “cattle” (true story).
Thankfully, after completing her resume and LinkedIn profile earlier this year, a client in just such an environment emailed me this weekend to say she accepted a NEW job with a great, Fortune 500 company (she researched them well) and at her target role.
So, all of you out there stuck in the muck of a bad job — there is hope, but as with “luck,” to enable hope often requires your preparedness to intersect with opportunity!
In the meantime, to help sooth your weary soul while navigating a soul-sucking environment, I offer five actionable tips you can employ.
1. Take time off.
2. Imbibe in the sun.
3. Seek outside help.
4. Stop all the self-sacrifice.
5. Exercise.
[Read the full explanations behind each tip at my recent Glassdoor blog post: 5 Tips to Clean Up a Toxic Work Situation.]
Hello Jacqui,
Your five suggestions are indeed soul-soothing — and after the exercise, don’t forget to schedule in a massage!
Also consider counteracting the toxic environment by sending out gratitude/thank-you’s to colleagues. Their day (and yours) will be uplifted and perhaps, this will be the start of a trend or even, a corporate culture revolution. Wouldn’t that be a cool accomplishment to add to the resume?
Jackie Yun
Good morning, Jackie!
The ‘massage’ follow-on sounds luxuriously soothing. Thank you for the apt suggestion.
Awww, and how creative to suggest a way to lighten up and invigorate the corporate culture with thank-you notes, helping to diffuse the negativity. A revolutionary idea for sure.
Your ideas and insights, as always, add energy and positivity to my posts.
Thank you!
Jacqui