how to deal with competitive and jealous coworkers

The workplace can be full of sharks and snakes. Survival is a matter of training, perseverance and rising above the situation. These are 5 suggestions to think about if you find yourself in an unpleasant situation.

1.      Dealing with sabotage
This is a tricky situation and should be dealt with carefully. Do not stoop to the level of your co-worker and engage in an emotional or confrontational manner. Poor reactions will only look bad on you and not your co-worker.

Think of how you can avoid further traps instead. If a co-worker stole your credit, make sure that next time you have to work with them, demonstrate your contributions in a more visible way, and perhaps on a timely basis so that everyone knows the process involved and not just the end-result.

Workplace sabotage sometimes stem from a toxic work environment that goes beyond just 1 – 2 nasty individuals. If it is truly a workplace culture that you cannot adjust to, it may be better to formulate an exit plan.

2.      Friendly competition
Research shows that 25 percent of people wilt under competition (they become disengaged), 25 percent of people aren’t impacted by it, and 50 percent of people benefit from it. Be the group that benefits from competitive co-workers!

Use it as motivation. The fact that they see you as a threat means that you are doing something good. Keep your eyes on the prize and continue working hard.

3.      Extend an Olive Branch
Try to rise above the victim mindset that everyone is out to get you. Just because they are aloof doesn't mean they hate you. 

Extend an olive branch to your colleagues. Offer to cover them for something, help them out in a meeting, send them something useful or positive to make their day. As they say, "kill them with kindness". 9 times out of 10, this method works far more effectively than a confrontational or aggressive one which never ends well for anyone. 

4.      Address misunderstandings head-on
Being introspective is a key way to be self-aware and improve yourself. If there is a particularly petty coworker, or if there are recurring issues (perhaps even across workplaces], the problem may lie with you. Is there a certain manner that you carry yourself of your work style that isn’t conducive to being a team player? Otherwise, you may have done something inadvertently which really annoyed your co-worker and you never realized it.

A direct conversation can do wonders. Most of the time petty jealousy and anger stems from misunderstandings. Do your best to address issues head-on in a frank and candid manner, and you can nip the problem in the bud.