Signs you are in a toxic work environment and some practical tips and tricks

 

Below are telltale signs that you are in a toxic work environment. Whilst all of these statements certainly have a solution, you need to understand that working in a toxic work environment will eventually catch up to you career-wise and potentially even health-wise. If you are constantly stressed and have to watch your every move, you need to be careful. 

You are not trusted to do your job and are being micromanaged. 

When employees are asked what is the number one thing that they really can not stand about toxic work environments, most answer that they simply are not trusted (or their line manager is untrustworthy, and have proven more than once that they simply can't be trusted). This normally translates into insecure managers that just love to micromanage you. Micromanagement means that your direct line manager feels it is more important for them that you have to showcase what you are busy with (and normally how to do it better according to them) than you getting the job done. Another very toxic tactic that normally goes hand in hand with micromanagement is when a people manager casually mentioned that “they are very uncertain about exactly what you are busy with”. This tactic then spills over into micromanaging you and making you feel the “guilty party” due to your “lack of feedback”. Trust is the cornerstone of non-toxic work environments. It has to be constantly nurtured and takes some real guts and hard conversations to address. 

Very unclear or just bad communication (worst case scenario you are being lied to). 

It sounds like a cliche, but bad or unclear communication is normally a telltale sign of a toxic environment. Communication is another cornerstone of any company. Without it, most companies can not function properly. If you are unclear over what is expected from you and those around you (and everybody is just pretending to know what they are doing), you are setting yourself up for real failure. This is not the same as a person being vulnerable and saying: “I don't know, but let me find out”. Bad communication boils down to something very simple: are YOU clear about what is expected from you? Are you in the loop with decisions that will impact you? Do you have all the information you need to do your job? If the answer is no - look a bit further for more signs if you are in a toxic work environment. 

Being lied to by people about work-related aspects in the workplace is one of the clearest signs that you are in a toxic work environment and need to make some serious choices. 

Boundaries are ignored.

Sometimes we have to put in the extra work to make sure things get done, we all have at some point worked beyond what you consider “normal”, however when the company thinks it is absolutely in order that any sort of boundary that you might have, is disregarded - it is a very bad sign. Think about the 2 o’clock WhatsApp or email waking you up because someone could not sleep..or think about relentless requests for overtime, and when overtime is considered normal without any additional compensations. 

There is a clear lack of growth and staff turnover is high.   

Some companies go to great lengths to ensure that employees have a very clear pathway to growth. Others simply wish for the best. Not having a clear growth path in a company is normally indicative of a toxic work environment. Another big sign is one that is very obvious - high staff turnover - talent rarely sits around if they are not recognised correctly. While some turnover for a company is actually very healthy -  when you notice more and more staff are being turned over it normally means the company culture is rotten. 

Sometimes all you need is your gut to tell you that you are in a toxic work environment. 

Let's look at some practical thing you can do in a toxic work environment: 

• Have a healthy attitude and work with everything you have in you to find a solution. 
• Find others that might feel the same way as you do, but don't gossip about the toxic work environment, rather speak about what you and others can do to turn things around. 
• Take REALLY care of yourself, destress every day after work, find quality time with friends and family. A Toxic work environment can be overwhelming. 
• Start to find alternatives - i.e. start to look for another job. Whilst we would all love to work in non-toxic environments, the reality is that sometimes it is so embedded into company culture, that you need to realise that you are simply not a fit, and need to move on. 
• Document everything - from meetings, phone calls, keep a paper trail as far as possible. Even follow up corridor requests and conversations. 
• See if constructive feedback will help - but understand that you need to be sure that it will be appreciated, otherwise it will simply backfire. 
• Stay focused on important goals - set your own goals that will fulfil you.  
• Be in general just a nice person to everybody. 

Above all else, realise that nothing is permanent.