There is always light at the end of the tunnel. The challenge would be, is it visible and do we walk through it despite the obstacles you encounter or will encounter. When we plan our lives, it sometimes comes with the assumptions that our timelines will work out perfectly with little or no disruptions. The reality however, depresses a lot of people.
In my years working in the wedding industry ( I still work in this industry), I have witnessed many couples plan to the last detail how their big day should or will turn out. There are quite a number who think beyond one plan incase they meet challenges or complete failure in one aspect of the day. Sadly, their clear plans end with the wedding day. The journey of their marriage might sometimes be left to fate.
I feel the same trend with many when it comes to planning their careers. They may take awhile deciding what they want to do. For some however, it is clear what they want to do. Hence, they work out a strategy that involves learning to gain a clear understanding of what they want. This may mean many years of education or even following on social media those they may admire in their chosen careers. For some, they keep trying and pushing until they achieve their desired career.
If your career choice involves working with others as colleagues in an office, that usually brings different people together with personalities that can clash than mesh well together. In any office, there will be some who meddle in other peoples lives. The confident, proud, timid, narcissistic traits, emotional problems, those experiencing family challenges and the list goes on and on. As if this is not enough, office politics can come into play. What then changes the workplace that you dreamed about working from a happy place to a toxic environment?
Any new relationship mostly has the honeymoon period and the future looks bright and happy. Working in a new environment usually involves forming new relationships with individuals. There is joy to it and most people bring out the best representative when you first meet them. For some, it can be hidden beyond 3 months but for some this pretense doesn’t last long. The real person comes to the surface. You can easily start your career looking forward to work everyday and then it suddenly changes to the point that you even dread going to work.
The reality is, at home or even work, we will always have different personalities that can work well together or fail based on the people involved and the efforts to accommodate one another. With careers, just like wedding days there is always life after the big event. You have landed your dream job……well, congratulations. Now the journey begins and it’s hardly a series of happy ever after’s. There are challenges. One in particular is that your place of employment may end up being a toxic environment. What do you do in this case or where do you go from here?
One advise that you can hear repeatedly said is that if your job is toxic, leave it immediately. But is that always easy for everyone? NO. There are individuals who may have the courage to walk out of a bad situation at the beginning of it or even when it gets worse. There are some who all they seem to do is complain about the difficulties they keep experiencing but never are they able to do anything to change their predicament. This maybe attributed to their personality, upbringing or some sort of trauma they may be experiencing or may have experienced in the past. Another harsh reality maybe that the victim of toxic workspaces maybe the sole breadwinner with many financial obligations that rests upon their shoulder making quitting impossible or just out of the question.
When the odds are stuck against you and this has to sadly be your norm for a short while or for years to come, how then do you walk through this dark tunnel and keep your hope alive that you will reach the end of the tunnel?
A good strategy works in such situation. Think about your work situation keenly and find out what makes it toxic. Address that or if it’s a series of issues, understand how well you can navigate the situation. Keep the boundaries clear in mind that you work with your colleagues and not friends. It can help address issues from a less emotional perspective. If potential for career growth, educational advancement and better pay aren’t provided by your employer, it would be wise to start planning your exit strategy early. You can also be honest with yourself by carrying a self evaluation. We may blame others for being toxic when it is we who are difficult to work with and get along. Keep in mind that a move to a new job might not necessarily mean an end to the challenges we currently experience at work. When we clearly understand what makes our place of work toxic, then we can draw the line on what’s acceptable to work with or not.
Digital Marketer 