Topics that you must avoid discussing at the workplace

Employees at the workplace discuss so many things but there are some conversations that should not be discussed at the workplace. Discussing controversial topics with colleagues or with others at the workplace may disturb the office environment and may also influence your job. It is better not to make lengthy conversations on the topics that are controversial. Here are some topics that you should never discuss at the work place:

About religion: This is a very sensitive issue and people get very personal when they start discussing about one’s own religion. Each and every person respects their own religion and feels that their religion is the one in which everyone should believe. This may sometimes hurt the other person’ feelings and may also lead to serious situations. Therefore, one should never discuss or express their feelings about one’s own religion at the work place.

About politics: Politics is also one of the sensitive issues especially at the time of elections. One may be supporting a party and the other person may be strongly opposing that party. This conversation may lead to uncomfortable situations as one will try to win their colleagues over to their own point of view. Therefore discussing about politics should also be avoided at the work place.

About your personal problems: Discussing family problems with co-workers may distract you and your colleagues from doing their job. Talking about your personal problems will reveal your weakness. Work place is meant to maintain professionalism and one should never mix up their personal life with work. So, one should strictly avoid discussing about their personal life at the work place.

About salary: this is also one of the controversial topics and is not good manners to know how much your colleagues are earning. Salary, bonuses and allowances will differ for every employee and will be purely based on the individual capabilities. Comparing your salary with others and discussing at the work place is not encouraged as this may create cracks in the professional relationships. If one has any queries and concerns about the salary then they should discuss only with the HR department.

About the boss and the company: When things go wrong between employee and boss, employee starts bad mouthing his/her boss before their co-workers. This is not good and this may lead to employee’s termination. Instead, it is better to stand up and admit your fault. What so ever may happen, but one should always talk positive about the company and about the boss.

Fired vs. Resigning : Reasons for both

In companies firing and resigning of employees goes on simultaneously and more over firing of the employees happens mostly at the time of recession. Employees who are removed by the company can be called as fired and the employees who quit the company by themselves can be called as resigning. Reasons for firing and resigning may be different. When a person is not performing well or is no more needed by the company, then the employee may get fired by the employers. Here are some reasons for getting fired or for resigning:

Reasons for getting fired

Unfortunately, at times employers fire their employees without any reason. This is called as employment at will where the employee will be told at the time of employment that they can be removed at any time without any reason and without any notice. And most of the times employees may be fired by giving them a specific reason for why they have been fired.

Some of the specific reasons behind firing an employee would be:

• If the employee is not performing well and is not showing any interest towards work
• If he/she is violating the company rules and regulations
• If he/she is found lying about their qualification and experience
• If the employee is doing personal work in the office and that too during office hours
• If he/she is taking too many leaves without intimating or often coming late to office
• If the employee is seen damaging the company’s property
• If he/she is misbehaving with colleagues and with the authorities. Also not following the directions or orders.
• If the employee is damaging the company reputation by talking badly about the company or the boss through different social networking sites like facebook, twitter etc.
• If the employee is consuming alcohol, drugs or is smoking at the work place
• If the employee is harassing his/her co-workers and is gossiping more without doing work.
• If he/she is found stealing or lying in the company

Reasons for resigning

There may be many reasons for an employee in resigning from a company in which they are working. Some of the specific reasons for an employee behind resigning would be:

• When there is no appreciation or there is no recognition for the work they do then it could be one of the major reasons for an employee to leave the organization
• If the employee is getting too much of work all the time which is beyond his/her limits
• When they are assigned work that doesn’t match their designation, they will get frustrated and disappointed with their job
• When an employee is underpaid for the work they do or if they do have enough benefits when compared with other companies
• When the employee has less opportunity to grow within the organization, then they would like to leave the job because everyone wants the best stage of his career according to his abilities.
• Sometimes employees cannot create good relations with their seniors or with colleagues. Therefore it gets difficult to work in an unhealthy environment and employees resign.
• It will be very boring to do the same job for long time. Employees get frustrated and tired of doing the same job and they resign
• When the company is moving to some other location where the employee cannot go and work

Did you get a negative feedback from your boss? Tips to bounce back after a bad performance review

Employees in their company may sometimes, receive negative feedback because of their poor performance at work. When they receive negative feedback, they will get depressed and do not show any interest to work. Well it is quite natural to feel defensive when somebody gives a negative feedback, but reacting seriously may worsen situations and may lead to losing employment. Taking the feedback positively and doing extra hard work to get back on the track is the key to an exceptional one the next time around. Here are some suggestions to bounce back after a bad performance review:

Make a note and ask questions

Instead of getting depressed about the feedback, start the preliminary process by taking both good and bad of the feedback. When the employer is stressing on the things which you should excel in your work, then take a pen and paper and note them. This will show that you are really committed to improve better and do something with the feedback instead of just receiving it. Ensure that you clearly understand their remarks, if you don’t understand then ask for a clarification.

Treat the feedback positively

When you get a negative feedback, it is very important that you take it positively. You might have worked hard, but once think of what might have contributed in getting a poor feedback. It depends on the way you interpret it and how you want to approach those changes. Treat the feedback as a gift and if you think that the feedback you get fits you, then you can make necessary changes that support your professional development. And if you feel that the feedback you got is not correct, take feedback from other sources and then decide what to do. Finally, if the feedback doesn’t reflect you and your work, then it is better to ignore it. Taking the feedback positively will give you an opportunity to learn from your mistakes and to find solutions to avoid them in future. This will boost your confidence levels and you can handle them effectively if they arise again.

Be a self critic

Self evaluation is very important for each and every employee as it will help them to judge and monitor their own progress more scrupulously, rather than leaving the judgment entirely to the superiors. When one self evaluates their performance, it will avoid unpleasant surprises at the time of performance review. By doing self evaluation, you will get a clear idea of what your boss is expecting from you and what you are giving from yourself.

Act accordingly

After receiving bad performance review, you have to weigh your options and make necessary changes. Organize yourself and prepare a calendar that includes all the tasks that you need to be completed for a week or a month and prioritize them. Showing good organizational skills will help you in keeping track of what’s going on and minimizes the risk of falling behind on your work.