Not everyone loves their job, but they at least like it enough to make it bearable to spend 40 hours a week there. However, being in a toxic work environment can seriously zap your energy (and your will to live). How do you know if what you’re dealing with is par for the course in professional environments or something altogether poisonous? See how many of the following toxic job traits you can cross off your list.
1. A constantly negative atmosphere
Yeah, work sucks sometimes, but constant negativity can be mentally exhausting. Endless complaining about the job, boss, or coworkers only serves to create a miserable and demoralizing atmosphere, and no one wants to deal with that five days a week. It’s not just about having a bad day; it’s an ongoing vibe where positivity seems to be sucked out of the office. It literally makes you dread getting up in the morning, and that’s no good.
2. Poor Communication
When information doesn’t flow properly at work (or flow at all), it can lead to a lot of problems and create a toxic work environment. You find out about assignments/projects at the last minute, don’t get feedback on your work, and maybe even miss out on important emails or meetings. As a result, you end up feeling confused, left out, and completely unsupported. It’s up to your manager/boss to keep everyone in the loop about the things they need to know. If they don’t, they’re not very good at their job.
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4. No Work-Life Balance
If your job is invading your personal life regularly, you’re in a toxic work environment. This could be in the form of expectations to answer emails or work on projects late at night, over the weekends, or even during vacations. When work consistently spills over into your personal time, it can lead to burnout, stress, and resentment towards your job and/or your boss. Without a healthy work-life balance, you won’t last long there, and that’s understandable.
5. Unrealistic Expectations
Being under constant pressure to perform miracles at work is not only stressful but also unsustainable. Maybe you’re given tasks with impossible deadlines, handling an unmanageable workload, or expected to have skills beyond your level without proper training or time to learn (or extra compensation despite the added responsibility). No wonder you end up feeling overwhelmed and burnt out — that’s a totally toxic work environment.
6. Frequent Office Drama
A job that’s rife with drama is stressful as hell. When conflicts, gossip, or the office mean girl acting out are the norms rather than the exception, it creates a chaotic and unstable environment in which you never know where you stand or what you’re going to walk into from one day to the next. You have to try and navigate people’s personal issues and probably get caught up in stuff that has nothing to do with you or your actual work. It’s distracting, annoying, and really messed up.
7. Lack of Growth Opportunities
Feeling stuck in your job with no chance for advancement or skill development really blows. Whether you get passed over for promotions or there are no promotions to speak of, treading water at the same job for years on end leaves you feeling stuck, stagnant, and really frustrated. While your boss can’t magic opportunities out of thin air, if there’s literally nowhere to go but straight on the same road you’ve been traveling for years, you’re in a toxic work environment and should probably start looking for other opportunities.
8. Disrespectful Behavior
You don’t have to like someone to respect you — that’s just called basic etiquette and decency. In a toxic work environment, however, you have to put up with dismissive attitudes, offensive jokes, or even more blatantly inappropriate forms of harassment. It’s one thing if talking to HR or your boss gets this bad behavior nipped in the bud, but if it’s tolerated or ignored by higher ups, you end up feeling helpless and maybe even unsafe at your job.
9. High Turnover Rate
A revolving door of employees is often indicative of underlying issues at the company. If you notice that many people are leaving frequently, especially workers who are talented and capable, it’s a sign that something is amiss. It could be down to poor management, lack of recognition, or a general inability (or unwillingness) to hang in such a toxic work environment. Who could blame them?
10. Feeling undervalued
Consistently feeling like your contributions and efforts go unnoticed is simultaneously depressing and infuriating. Maybe you never receive credit for your work, your ideas are disregarded, or your boss never acknowledges all of your hard work. Either way, feeling like you’re just a seat filler who’s easily replaceable isn’t exactly motivating. As a result, you end up feeling disengaged and disinterested.
11. Micromanagement
If your every move and decision are constantly monitored and second-guessed by your manager or boss, you’re being micromanaged. It’s incredibly suffocating and basically implies that they have no trust in your abilities (despite having been hired for them). This destroys your autonomy and makes you second-guess your skills and decisions. As a result, you end up feeling restless and desperate to get out of there ASAP.
12. Poor mental or physical health
When your job starts taking a toll on your physical or mental health, it’s a serious red flag. From extreme stress and anxiety to insomnia or even migraines or fatigue, the effects a toxic work environment can have on your physical and mental being are numerous and also really serious. If everything else in your life is going great and you’re content but your job is making you miserable, that’s not a coincidence.
13. Competitive colleagues
In a healthy work environment, colleagues collaborate and support each other. However, if you’re in a situation where everyone is pretty much out for themselves and happy to throw you and anyone else under the bus to get ahead, that’s a problem. Petty people like this tend to hoard info, take credit for your work, and refuse to help out even when it’s their job. You end up feeling like you’re in a competition rather than a workplace, and it’s really hard to deal with.
