The Sour Attitude (Part 3 of 6 Difficult People Guide)

In this post, we will look at the sour attitude. If you haven’t read the first two articles in the series, I strongly encourage you to go back and check out the rest of this series.

Check Out the Entire Series:

Part 1: A Guide to Dealing with Difficult People - Introduction

Part 2: The Complainer

Part 3: The Sour Attitude

Part 4: The Responsibility Avoider

Part 5: The Spokesperson

Part 6: Engaging and Guiding Difficult People

When I talk about the sour attitude, I am referring to those people who have a negative outlook. They don’t bring anything positive to the team and are always focused on the things that are wrong, often finding fault where there is none. These people will gossip, talk badly about their coworkers and the company, and always try to paint themselves as victims.

These people can poison a team quickly and must be dealt with and not allowed to spread their negative attitudes. I have found, and firmly believe, that we cannot change people. People are who they are, and all you can do is to try to redirect them and give them incentives that encourage them to change their habits.

While there are certain things that you can do to manage them and try to get them to focus on what are their issues, very often the best thing you can do with these people is to get them off the team, but this may not be an option due to your business policies or legal considerations.

Working to Correct Behavior

So, let us assume for this discussion that we don’t have the authority to remove this individual from our team, and our only option is to manage this personality type. First, as with almost all the negative personalities, we deal with, we must focus their attention on what is within their control – themselves and their actions.

You must make them realize that they cannot change anything other than their actions and reactions to the circumstances. They can choose to be negative in which case nothing will change, or they can want to improve the situation and try to find a way to achieve positive outcomes.

It can be helpful to sit this type of person down and make a list of the positive actions they could take and the possible positive outcomes that could come from those actions. Help them to see what they can do to push things forward in a manner that brings them benefit.

When they complain about the company and all they perceive as wrong, help them to understand all the good that the company does to benefit them, and the alternatives that exist in the world that they could find themselves in that do not offer the same benefits.

When to get Human Resources Involved

If you are getting complaints about them gossiping and creating conflict on the floor, you need to address these issues immediately. Get specific details and document all occurrences. Work within your company’s policies, and with your HR department, to solve the problems as they happen and take disciplinary action as required.

Documenting all incidences of non-conformance with company policies and rules is essential and helps build a case for dismissing a troublesome employee.

Make sure that you keep your HR department aware of all issues and share with them all your documentation. The more documentation you can provide, and the more consistently you address concerns, the higher the chance you have that your HR manager will back you up and defend a decision to separate from a destructive and harmful employee.

Key Strategies for All Situations

Remember to set clear and consistent expectations. Hold these people accountable for their actions and never let them distract or obfuscate.

Always keep the conversation with these people focused on the positive – the good in the job and the company. If they try to take you down into a rat hole, don’t follow. Always control the conversation by steering them back to what is in their circle of influence.

Conclusion

Through consistent messaging, clear expectations, accountability, and proper documentation you can manage a sour attitude. These strategies can also help to make the case for their removal if a change in behavior is not successful. Always focus on the positive and never let the problematic employee poison your team. Get the support of your HR department and provide them with proper documentation to be able to deal with problematic employees.

Remember the only things we have ultimate control over are our thoughts and actions.