SUMMARY POINTS
Okay, so picture this - you're on your third cup of coffee by 10 a.m., juggling meetings, catching up on emails, and preparing for a big presentation. Then, you see it - a “reply all” email from Stupid Sam. It’s classic Sam, who manages to misinterpret your email and sends a company-wide message making you look like you fucked up when he’s the one that didn’t get it.
Frustrating, right?
The workplace is full of personalities, skills, and well... varying levels of idiocy. But what do you do when efforts to collaborate feel more like babysitting? How do you manage the frustration without pulling your hair out?
Here's how to deal with "dumb" coworkers and protect your sanity along the way.
Frustrating, right?
The workplace is full of personalities, skills, and well... varying levels of idiocy. But what do you do when efforts to collaborate feel more like babysitting? How do you manage the frustration without pulling your hair out?
Here's how to deal with "dumb" coworkers and protect your sanity along the way.
Why Inept Coworkers Stress You Out
The stress caused by less-than-capable coworkers often has nothing to do with malicious intent. It’s not like they’re the office asshole, which is a totally different kind of coworker stress. This is different.
The stress from inept colleagues results from your day getting derailed because you’ve gotta devote more energy to getting shit back on track. It’s their lack of understanding, knowledge and/or skills that directly disrupts your workflow and causes all sorts of inefficiencies in your day.
It’s things like…
Extra work dumped on you because your colleague missed a deadline or dropped the ball.
Frustrating bottlenecks, like when someone's errors cause delays that impact your timeline and make it hard to keep the momentum going.
Unnecessary conflict, where you find yourself arguing with dumber than dumb airheads.
It’s not just about the incompetence itself. It’s the ripple effect their behavior creates, impacting your sanity and mental health. It makes managing work stress so much harder than it needs to be.
Usually, they’re not purposefully being stupid, at least we hope not. Most of the time, it’s because they have an intelligence level of a 3rd grader and the gears in their head just don’t mesh sometimes.
And when you try to fix stupidity, that’s when you’ll find yourself banging your head against the wall and getting stressed out. And if you keep doing this, you’re just messing up your mental health.
The stress from inept colleagues results from your day getting derailed because you’ve gotta devote more energy to getting shit back on track. It’s their lack of understanding, knowledge and/or skills that directly disrupts your workflow and causes all sorts of inefficiencies in your day.
It’s things like…
Extra work dumped on you because your colleague missed a deadline or dropped the ball.
Frustrating bottlenecks, like when someone's errors cause delays that impact your timeline and make it hard to keep the momentum going.
Unnecessary conflict, where you find yourself arguing with dumber than dumb airheads.
It’s not just about the incompetence itself. It’s the ripple effect their behavior creates, impacting your sanity and mental health. It makes managing work stress so much harder than it needs to be.
Usually, they’re not purposefully being stupid, at least we hope not. Most of the time, it’s because they have an intelligence level of a 3rd grader and the gears in their head just don’t mesh sometimes.
And when you try to fix stupidity, that’s when you’ll find yourself banging your head against the wall and getting stressed out. And if you keep doing this, you’re just messing up your mental health.
Why Are Some Coworkers...Dumb?
Before we go too far, it’s worth acknowledging that "dumb" can sometimes be an unfair term. People can appear inept to you for various reasons, like a lack of experience, mismatches of skills, or different strengths.
Here's what might be happening behind the scenes.
They’re not qualified for the job. They were a bad hire. Wrong person for the wrong job.
They weren’t trained properly. Management often throws people into new roles without enough support. Inevitably, mistakes follow.
Lack of accountability. When companies don't enforce performance standards, mediocrity can snowball. They could be slackers that just don’t give a shit anymore. They are completely disengaged.
Straight up - they’re just simply dumb. They don’t have the skills, aptitude, desire and/or discipline to do their job correctly and efficiently.
Understanding the root of their ineptitude won’t magically fix their mistakes, but it could help you work around their stupidity.
Here's what might be happening behind the scenes.
They’re not qualified for the job. They were a bad hire. Wrong person for the wrong job.
They weren’t trained properly. Management often throws people into new roles without enough support. Inevitably, mistakes follow.
Lack of accountability. When companies don't enforce performance standards, mediocrity can snowball. They could be slackers that just don’t give a shit anymore. They are completely disengaged.
Straight up - they’re just simply dumb. They don’t have the skills, aptitude, desire and/or discipline to do their job correctly and efficiently.
Understanding the root of their ineptitude won’t magically fix their mistakes, but it could help you work around their stupidity.
Five Ways to Deal With Inept Coworkers
When you can't fix someone’s brain, you’re left with one option: managing your reaction to it. Here’s how you can stay calm, cool, and collected, even when your coworker seems allergic to common sense.
1. Play Circus Music In Your Head
Sometimes, turning the tables on the situation can really help. You can do this by playing circus music in your head every time the idiot is talking or when you’re reading an email from them. This shit works. Sometimes, it can even bring a smile to your face. You gotta have fun at work, right?
2. Set Boundaries
Not every problem is yours to solve. Refuse to be the office "fixer." If sloppy tasks land on your desk, push back by clarifying roles in a fact-based manner. Set solid boundaries and learn to say no and say it with a smile.
3. Limit Emotional Reactions
"Easier said than done," you say. True. But letting frustration take over only makes you feel shittier. Here’s a tip - when a colleague does something that derails you, wait 30 seconds before reacting. Take a deep breath and ask yourself, “Will this shit matter next week?” The more control you have over your emotions, the better you’ll feel.
4. Play Defense With Documentation
It sucks to have to cover your ass, but documentation protects you if someone’s mistakes get put on you wrongly. Create email trails or written confirmations whenever you work on shared projects with idiots.
5. Vent & Get It Out
Finally, don’t bottle up all that irritation. Go grab your work BFF and go for a walk-n-vent session outside. The combination of getting all of the frustration out of you and getting fresh air inside of you can bring powerful instant relief.
1. Play Circus Music In Your Head
Sometimes, turning the tables on the situation can really help. You can do this by playing circus music in your head every time the idiot is talking or when you’re reading an email from them. This shit works. Sometimes, it can even bring a smile to your face. You gotta have fun at work, right?
2. Set Boundaries
Not every problem is yours to solve. Refuse to be the office "fixer." If sloppy tasks land on your desk, push back by clarifying roles in a fact-based manner. Set solid boundaries and learn to say no and say it with a smile.
3. Limit Emotional Reactions
"Easier said than done," you say. True. But letting frustration take over only makes you feel shittier. Here’s a tip - when a colleague does something that derails you, wait 30 seconds before reacting. Take a deep breath and ask yourself, “Will this shit matter next week?” The more control you have over your emotions, the better you’ll feel.
4. Play Defense With Documentation
It sucks to have to cover your ass, but documentation protects you if someone’s mistakes get put on you wrongly. Create email trails or written confirmations whenever you work on shared projects with idiots.
5. Vent & Get It Out
Finally, don’t bottle up all that irritation. Go grab your work BFF and go for a walk-n-vent session outside. The combination of getting all of the frustration out of you and getting fresh air inside of you can bring powerful instant relief.
You Can’t Fix Stupidity, So Just Move On
The hard truth is, you can't change other people's competence levels. Stupid is and always will be stupid.
You could spend years trying to help Stupid Sam, but at what cost to you?
It's just not worth it.
Instead, focus on what you can do to limit the impact they have on your mental health and work performance.
Remember, you’re not in charge of fixing everyone’s mistakes or poor decisions. All you can do is set boundaries, protect your sanity, and get in the zone to keep kicking ass.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]
You could spend years trying to help Stupid Sam, but at what cost to you?
It's just not worth it.
Instead, focus on what you can do to limit the impact they have on your mental health and work performance.
Remember, you’re not in charge of fixing everyone’s mistakes or poor decisions. All you can do is set boundaries, protect your sanity, and get in the zone to keep kicking ass.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]