Problem at work

[lostandscared5]

Hi everyone,

 

Before i start getting into the nitty gritty of my situation i just want to say that i am grateful that i do have a job and i have worked there for a month or so.

 

Yes i do admit that i am a slow learner and has to do thing multiple times to get it right sometimes. There are six people at the company that i am working at including me. Two of the coworkers W and S rarely comment on my work performance. L and J are patient and tolerate of my work petformance even though i mess up but i can tell that they are not satisfied with my work performance thus far. And i just feel like somethings wrong with me cuz my friends who have a lot of work experience can stick to their jobs for years and i cant cuz i dont have a lot of experience plus im a slow learner and cannot pick things up fast which makes me wantta quit before they fire me but i also know i owe it to everyone around me to stick to this til the end. F is the b**** who tries to male my life hell. F likes to pick on my and point out what a horrible job that i am doing. For instance, she pointed out that "you only do 10% of your work andi dont know what you do with the rest of your time and we have to pick up after your work" which makes me think that since i am not a productive worker that they will fire me. What do i do in this situation? I cant seem to let her comment go and i take it to heart and i take it so personally and its been a day already and i cant help thinking about it constantly. I feel useless, worthless, insecure, hollow, incapable, and scared that i will mess up my life every time something starts to go my way. I am so afraid that history will repeat itself. Please give me some advice before i drive myself insane.

 

Any comments, opinions, advice would be much appreciated.

[Sparklesong]

I've been in situations like that, and it is horrible

 

So, F is a bully....but is there any truth to what she is saying? Maybe one place to start is to make sure nobody is actually picking up after you. You don't say what kind of work it is, but every so often, take a quick look around your workspace and tidy up a little, throw away anything that is just lying around that needs to go in the trash. If you can, work on increasing your speed a little bit at a time. Basically, even if she's nasty in the way she's saying it, she may be trying to help you. Some people are just naturally harsh in the way they speak on the job.

 

Since L & J seem to be the nice ones who are interested in what you're doing, ask them if they have any advice and can show you any shortcuts for getting the work done more quickly. It actually won't hurt to do the same thing with F. She may end up being a good mentor under all that crusty exterior, if you just smile, tell her something like, 'I know I'm slow and it must be annoying to have new people around." Compliment her, "You seem to know the job so well and do it so fast, can I watch how you do it? Maybe you could give me some tips? And I'm sorry about the trash, I'm trying to keep things neater...." Many times, a few nice words can soothe the savage beast

 

Some people are just naturally untrusting of new people and it takes awhile before they open up. What you can do is keep smiling, take any criticism they give you, even if it's not very constructive, as them trying to help you, don't take it as being picked on. Being the new person on the job is one of the worst hells on earth, lol. You just have to go in, do your best, and let the bad stuff roll off your shoulders. Remember, they need employees. No one wants to fire you. Usually, if you are putting forth good effort, being easy to get along with and nice to have around, and are slowly making improvement, then that's all anyone can ask for, and they're not going to fire you. One day, it will all come together, you'll know your job inside and out and life will be much easier. Hang in there

[RedDress]

You know... most people suck when they first start a job. It's completely normal! You can't possibly be good at what you do until you've done it A LOT, have encountered every possible scenario and can do it in your sleep.

 

I kind of disagree about your assessment of your co-workers, though. While F may not have a lot of tact and maybe she hurt your feelings, if you really think about it, she is the one who is doing you a favor. She is the one who is not sitting idly by letting you be oblivious, she is telling you flat-out that you are not meeting expectations (so you aren't clueless). This is good! It gives you a starting point.

 

Questions are your friend. While you may feel silly and embarrassed by asking a lot of questions - I think this is what you need to do.

 

If F is telling you that you only do about 10% of your work, you should ask her:

1) How much is expected of you? For example, if you are processing forms, what is the normal amount of forms that one can be expected to process in a day

2) Show her what you are doing and ask her how you can go faster? Maybe you are doing something terribly inefficient and she can show you shortcuts.

3) Ask her if there are other tasks that would normally be expected to do. Ask her what "other people having to pick up your workload" entails. Maybe you are only seeing one part of your job, they are waiting for you to be good & fast before giving you more, but you are not seeing the full picture.

 

I don't think W and S, while "nicer" are being very helpful at all. They will silently watch you fail and potentially get fired. Those who criticize are good - because you can take their comments and learn to excel.

 

Just food for thought. But you have to build a tough skin and have enough self-esteem to know that just because you are new at a task and not good yet, doesn't mean that you can't ever be good.