The war to COPE or LEAVE

How to deal with a toxic work culture.

1. Find your allies.

2. Focus on what you can control.

3. Document everything.

4. Seek courage and provide honest feedback.

5. if nothing works fuck it & move on.

Reflection-

1. Building a support system of some friendly and like-minded colleagues can help you boost your spirits and feel less isolated. This will be the group that you can connect with, which is important when it’s been proven that disclosing stress is a coping mechanism. If you’re not in a leadership position, you probably have limited power over how other people behave and interact. But you can control how you respond to it.
2. Stay focused on the decisions and reactions that you have a say in, and you’ll avoid expending energy and frustration on situations that aren’t worth your sweat.
3. Here’s a sad but true fact: one in four workers say they don’t trust their employer. That’s sure to be true in a toxic workplace. That diabolical environment has you constantly peeking over your shoulder, just waiting for the next person to throw you under the bus.
4. When you’re dealing with a negative work environment, it’s tempting to bite your tongue for fear of adding fuel to the fire. However, speak up when you’re given opportunities to provide feedback — whether that’s through employee surveys, your one-on-ones with your manager, upwards performance reviews, or another outlet.

If nothing’s working? It might be time to hit the road-

These are some tips that will help you to seek your mental peace in a toxic work culture. If you’ve taken these steps to improve your situation and nothing seems to be working, it’s probably time to jump ship and find a team and an environment that’s a better fit for you.

That decision might feel daunting or even a little guilt-inducing. But, remember that life’s way too short to crib your work every single day — especially when work stress can have such massive effects on your personal life and mental health.