Career News 24/7: The Cynical Girl: Don’t Kill Anyone at Work

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

The Cynical Girl: Don’t Kill Anyone at Work

Posted: 27 Aug 2012 06:45 AM PDT

You got a beef with someone at work? Let it go.

That’s all there is.

The modern workplace is nuts. Most of us bring pride and ego to our jobs. Then our employers tell us we must be dedicated, passionate and bring our whole selves to work. And our colleagues push our buttons. Every last one of them. Then we get fired or laid off and it’s over.

Work is like a fucked up family without the ability to punch someone in the face at Thanksgiving dinner.

I’ve seen tensions build in a work environment. I’ve seen people lose their shit at one another. I’ve never witnessed gun-related workplace violence, thank god, but I have always worked in close proximity to a panic button. I always wondered — could I get to that button in time?

HR always talks about conflict resolution but we never really say, “Hey, buddy. There are alternatives to violence.”

So let me say it. Don’t kill anyone at work.

If you ever feel violent towards anyone, it’s neither normal nor justified. You need to get some help. It’s available. Walk into a local church and ask to speak with a priest or a pastor. Find help on the internet. Talk to a trusted colleague or family member.

If you can’t talk to anyone in real life, you can call 1 (800) 950-NAMI (6264) and say, “I need some help.”

I’ve written this a million times: a job is just a job. The kind of epic hatred you feel in your head and your heart will go away. Your life isn’t ruined because someone fired you. You might be financially ruined right now. You might lose your home right now. Your credit might be fucked up right now. But you don’t have to feel inferior. You don’t have to hurt someone.

I’ve seen this with my own family: you can file for bankruptcy, walk away from the house, move in with a family member or a halfway house, go back to school on Pell Grants, start fresh, ignore the past and say no to the haunting self-doubt and anxieties in your mind.

Everything is temporary even when it feels like a lifetime of humiliation and bullshit. Lose your home? Get another. Broke? It’s temporary. Want to kill your old boss? Get help.

Please. Choose to move on. You can do it. I believe in you. There is no reason to bring a gun to work.