Re: How much are you supposed to expect out of your co-workers?

Thanks everybody for your input. I won't respond to your posts at this point, since I'd like to think about your replies before making an attempt to come to some sort of conclusion myself :-)

But in the meantime, there are few things I would like to point out about my environment, so that you can give me advises based on ( relatively ) accurate information

Make no mistake, I love where I work. As I said, most everybody at my company is so smart I doubt that they are of the same biological composition as I am, and no, my boss is not pointy-haired :-)
The stuff that we make is definitely exciting! I'm pretty darn proud about the product that I help to make.
The person in question is relatively new as well. The lack of knowledge is understandable, but I just can't understand the defeated atitude!

So no, I'm not fed up with my employer or the environment ( just yet ), but I'm just wondering what I should do / how I should deal with the small number of people like the one I described above

Also I was wondering if I was being too self-righteous, senstive, or just plain naive. I wanted a balanced opinion, you know?

Anyway, I will check back tomorrow. Thanks for taking your time to read this post, everybody

Comment on Re: How much are you supposed to expect out of your co-workers?

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Re: Re: How much are you supposed to expect out of your co-workers? by CubicSpline (Friar) on Sep 21, 2001 at 19:29 UTC
I think that pretty much anyone you talk to will have had some sort of experience with people like this in the workplace. The important thing I think is to be able to distinguish between a few key characteristics in the unmotivated, mal-performing coworker. 1. They may be trying really hard on their own and just can't get anywhere at all with it. Being in an environment with so many brilliant coworkers, it can be extremely uncomfortable to let anyone know that you're struggling with something. Having an experienced and somewhat idyllic senior engineer volunteer their time to help can be a big step in opening that person up to a whole world of knowledge that seemed unreachable before. 2. They may not be interested in the particular project that they have been assigned. Although it's not much of an excuse for not working, a lack of motivation and excitement in your job can really give a bad impression to everyone around you. Perhaps the person simply needs to be redirected to something they can throw themselves into and really make a difference. 3. They may just not give 2 shits. At that point, there's nothing left but either confront the person (especially if you're relying on their performance in any way) or bring it to the attention of the supervisor.	[reply]

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Re: Re: How much are you supposed to expect out of your co-workers?
by CubicSpline (Friar) on Sep 21, 2001 at 19:29 UTC

1. They may be trying really hard on their own and just can't get anywhere at all with it. Being in an environment with so many brilliant coworkers, it can be extremely uncomfortable to let anyone know that you're struggling with something. Having an experienced and somewhat idyllic senior engineer volunteer their time to help can be a big step in opening that person up to a whole world of knowledge that seemed unreachable before.

2. They may not be interested in the particular project that they have been assigned. Although it's not much of an excuse for not working, a lack of motivation and excitement in your job can really give a bad impression to everyone around you. Perhaps the person simply needs to be redirected to something they can throw themselves into and really make a difference.

3. They may just not give 2 shits. At that point, there's nothing left but either confront the person (especially if you're relying on their performance in any way) or bring it to the attention of the supervisor.

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