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10 Bad Work Habits You Must Ditch Right Away
Whether you’re just stepping into your career or have been at one for a while, it’s normal to sometimes get a little lazy and unmotivated at work. After all, many of us are overworked and don’t have a good balance between work and rest.
Being a great employee takes a lot of energy sometimes, but over here we believe in working smarter, not harder.
And let’s face it, you probably want to be the best you can be at your job, but also don’t want to get overworked or seem unprofessional.
In today’s post, I am going to be sharing 10 bad work habits you might be doing which you probably should ditch if you want to be the best you can be at your job, without sacrificing any free time in the process.
With that being said, let’s dive into these 10 unprofessional habits you should stop doing to ensure you are successful at your workplace.
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1- Not being punctual
If you’re one of those people who walks into your place of work late every day, this is one of the most unprofessional things you can do.
Coming to work late all the time is doing you no favors at all. First, you’re bound to piss off people who need you for something, and you will come across as disrespectful of everyone’s fime.
If you struggle getting ready for work in the morning, I have a post on how to get ready really quickly when you need to head out the door faster than usual. Alternatively, you can set your alarm to wake you up 15 to 30 minutes earlier than usual to give you enough time to get ready and get to work on time.
2- Always being unprepared
A really bad work habit is winging things instead of preparing for them. Depending on the industry you’re in, you might have to prepare for meetings or for any tasks you might have to do that day.
Not being prepared for important things you know you have to get ready for is definitely unprofessional and might come off as you being lazy and careless.
To prevent this, take 15 minutes every day to prepare for the next working day if you know you need to have something ready. This way, when you come in to work, you’ll be prepared and on top of your game.
3- Being the office gossiper
Office gossip is definitely something many of us partake in regularly, but that doesn’t mean that it’s right to talk about others in a malicious way. Some gossip, like sharing good news about a co-worker, can be okay in certain situations, but most of the time gossip is said to spread negativity.
Not only are you allowing someone else’s problems to become your own this way, but you’re also making it known to the office that you talk about others. This will make your co-workers more reluctant to speak about their own issues and troubles around you, as you might take this information and share it with the whole office.
To combat being seen as a gossip queen, simply excuse yourself, or pretend to not listen when you hear people gossiping near you. The best thing to say in a situation like this is to say nothing at all.
4- Interrupting people when they speak
Do you sometimes find yourself talking over people when they’re mid-sentence? That’s a huge no-no in a professional setting, but it does happen sometimes.
Interrupting others once in a while is needed, if they tend to talk a mile a minute, but try to keep the interruptions to a minimum. Listen to their point of view, acknowledge what they’ve said, and then offer your input.
Many people are great talkers, but not so great listeners. Training yourself to be one will help you a lot throughout your career.
5- Not being friendly to new staff
Being the new person in an office, or wherever really, is already stressful enough. It doesn’t help at all when people are being cold and not friendly. So why not be that person who welcomes new staff, and offers to show them the ropes?
Not only is this a kind thing to do, but you will also gain a potential new work friend and will be known as kind and helpful around the office.
Being cold towards new people is very childish and unprofessional, so always try to extend a hello to the newcomers. They will appreciate it more than you know.
Related: How To Make Friends At Work
6- Don’t go into the office while sick
Can we please stop acting like we’re too good to take days off?
Not only is this not good for our own health, but we also put others at risk of catching whatever we’re carrying. Sick days are there for a reason, and if you’re really in need of a day off to get your health better, take it.
However, there are also people who take more sick days than actually they actually, and you don’t want to be one of those either. Take days off when you need to, and come to work on the other days to avoid missing more time than necessary at the office.
7- Don’t overshare your personal details
Unless you’re really, really close with your co-workers, you probably shouldn’t be sharing every detail of your life with them.
Oversharing personal details can seem harmless until someone who isn’t your biggest fan hears some of it. Often, these people will try and use that information against you, which could hurt your career. Let’s face it, some personal details could harm your career and reputation at work, especially if something gets back to your boss.
For example, say you took a “sick day” right before the weekend, when you were really going on a trip and needed to be at the airport early. It is absolutely unnecessary to speak about your trip at the office, because you can easily slip up and mention that you got there around the time you were supposedly sick.
8- Don’t trash talk your workplace on social media
This is a no-brainer, but sometimes people still do this all over social media. There have actually been people who have been let go from their jobs because of something negative they have said about their workplace on their social media accounts.
Having social media is great for many things, but ranting about your workplace shouldn’t be done there.
The things you say can easily be taken to your bosses and put you in a very uncomfortable situation. This can be avoided if you save your rants for days when you’re out with some girlfriends instead of blasting your problems on your social media accounts.
9- Don’t send, or reply to, late work messages or emails
Once you’re out of the office, try not to send any work-related messages or emails. Plan these throughout the work day to avoid looking like you can’t manage your time at work.
If your boss has the habit of emailing you when you’re off the clock, don’t think you need to respond. Having downtime is crucial to a healthy work-life balance, and you won’t achieve that balance by reading and sending things that you can respond to in the morning when you’re at work.
10- Take responsibility for your mistakes
We all mess up from time to time, and that includes when we’re at work. A big part of being professional is owning up to your mistakes and taking responsibility.
Accountability is a wonderful trait to have, especially at work. You are instantly seen as mature and respected more if you own up to any messing up on your part, rather than blaming someone else or getting defensive.
If you’re someone who currently makes excuses instead of holding yourself accountable for your mistakes, you can easily turn it around before it can cause problems for you at the workplace.
Related: How To Take Responsibility
Final thoughts
Being respected at work is going to make your life at work a lot easier than you might think. The above tips are examples of just some of the things you could be doing that are hurting your career, but you can always turn those patterns into more professional ones.
If you enjoyed this post on bad work habits you should break, you should check out more career posts below.
Related posts you might enjoy:
INTERVIEW TIPS THAT WILL HELP YOU GET HIRED
10 CAREER TIPS FOR WORKING WOMEN
5 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE WORKPLACE
PROFESSIONAL AND COMFORTABLE WORK OUTFITS
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