by Nora Battelle
​
Dealing with a toxic coworker is a uniquely difficult situation: You probably don’t have the ability to cut off a relationship with that person, as you would a friend or romantic partner. That doesn’t mean, however, that you have to accept the status quoindefinitely. In fact, it’s crucial to find a healthy way to navigate a difficult working relationship. Left ignored, it can become perilous for you, your team and your company’s bottom line. 
In a seminal book by psychologists Alan A. Cavaoila, Ph.D., and Neil J. Lavender, Ph.D., called Toxic Coworkers: How to Deal with Dysfunctional People on the Job: Working with Narcissists, Borderlines, Sociopaths, Schizoids and Others, the authors highlight a staggering stat that’ll make you feel less alone as you traverse this tricky terrain: Of the 1,100 employees the duo surveyed, 80 percent of them reported experiencing moderate to severe stress as the result of dealing with a toxic coworker, whether they were a boss or subordinate. And a Harvard School of Business survey of

by Maura Thomas

​Around 11 p.m. one night, you realize there’s a key step your team needs to take on a current project. So, you dash off an email to the team members while you’re thinking about it.
No time like the present, right?
Wrong. As a productivity trainer specializing in attention management, I’ve seen over the past decade how after-hours emails speed up corporate cultures — and that, in turn, chips away at creativity, innovation, and true productivity.

If this is a common behavior for you, you’re missing the opportunity to get some distance from work — distance that’s critical to the fresh perspective you need as the leader. And, when the boss is working, the team feels like they should be working.

Think about the message you’d like to send. Do you intend for your staff to reply to you immediately? 

In my experience over all well-being and emotional intelligence are linked, it is hard to have one without the other. It is good to know the skills required to grow emotionally can be developed.  
The ability to, not only access your intuition - that gut feeling or inner voice - but also to respect what it is telling you is one of these skills. 
Learning to reshape long-established stifling patterns of behavior allows you to embrace the challenges of life more easily. Part of this is feeling intuitively what is right in a given situation.  
 
You will not gain anything from coaching if you are comfortable remaining passive with respect to difficult situations. Instead of this, be guided, encouraged, supported and motivated in developing your own possibilities to take action.
 
When you step on the path of personal development bear in mind: 

by Suzie Doscher,
​Executive and Life Coach, Zurich

According to the Business Dictionary personal power is “Influence over others, the source of which resides in the person instead of being vested by the position he or she holds.” In my opinion personal power in non-business language is the strength that lies within you. I feel I found my full personal power once I was aware and connected with my core values, had the life skills to handle difficult moments and situations, and had an influence on where my mind took me.  
 
Personal power is composed of:

• Knowing who you are
• Being comfortable with yourself
• Knowing what is right and wrong, a personal code of ethics 
• Being honest and trustworthy not only with others, but also with yourself
• Being dependable, again not only for others, but also for yourself
• Living your life from a place of integrity
• Handling your choices and their consequences, even the negative ones
• Knowing what you want, finding your way forward
• Knowing your weaknesses and your strengths
• Having an open-heartedand non-judgmental approach
• Taking responsibility for your actions and yourself

by Key Step Media  Time to read: 4 min.

​Whether you are a team leader or a member of a team, you will likely encounter situations in which you need to offer criticism or constructive feedback. While this can be difficult, giving feedback is a necessary part of leadership and being a member of a team. Teams that openly address counterproductive behavior create an environment that fosters continuous development, learning, and innovation. The ability to give effective, emotionally intelligent criticism is essential to high levels of team performance.

What Does It Mean to Offer Effective Criticism?

People who give effective criticism balance empathy and an understanding of the person they are giving feedback to with an objective and calm demeanor.