The Bully’s Trap | Andrew Faas | TEDxChathamKent

Good employees, competent, eager to do their job, these are the first to be bullied .

I lost everything to bullying at work. I can tell you don't go to HR department they are not there to protect you they are there to protect the company ,and the more proof you bring them and they realize you are right,they will turn on you to protect there interests,so when you go down that road don't be surprised your fighting with the bully and the company.

The victim does not not become a bad employee. They are redefined as a bad employee by management and HR.

HR is so complicit in this position issue. Making the victims the villains is so true.

He said management is behind bullying and it is true.

One way to deal with a bully is to get yourself a bigger "bully" in the form of a strong union or an experienced lawyer. It is important to remember that having taken such action, you will no longer be able to work for the organization. At least, you will leave with your dignity, having fought the good fight, and might even make life easier for those workers who remain.

All of this resonates. I've been bullied, then changed jobs only to work with friends of the bullies who then began to bully. I did have PTSD for a spell. Not long lasting. I now work as a healer of people who have been the target of bullying. It's a nightmare that very few adults understand unless they've gone through it.

Omg! This exactly what I've been through with these bullies!!! So I stood up. I fought! I reported them to EEO, OIG, OSC, JCAHO, Board of Nursing, Board of Medical Examiner, District Office, Congressman and Senators. I also reached out to our community to get support. I'm still waiting for the result. I'm ready to fight. I kept all my evidence and I'm so ready to face them. The Union has been supporting me 100%.

Bullies are everywhere in organizations now. They are used as the "attack dogs" for senior management. They have been in effect given a license to kill, and what they do is manage out employees who they think are threats, or occupy positions that they would like to see filled by one of their confederates. For the most part, they attack and see the response. Then the response is made the issue, not the initial attack. So the target will be seen as a "difficult employee" if they cannot handle "frank criticism." They keep attacking until they get the response they want. Your job is not to given in. You will be tested at some point.

I've come to learn that bullies are deeply insecure and create trouble and fear and suffering for others, never give in to them!!!!! There are many ways to deal with them (sometimes not dealing with them is the right way), however, just having knowledge that this is who they are is the first step.

Working at an environment that is free and save from from bullying and violence is a fundamental right.

Happening right now and I have confronted..will keep doing so and won't back down. Narcissistic people are cowards. I learned through many experiences how they work and that's my armour

They're murderers. I'm going through the same thing.

I realize I am seeing this presentation months after presented and commented on, but that is the beauty of the venue. I am a former Elementary School Teacher. Yearly our classrooms had presentations by the School Psychologist and performed role play examples of bullying. It was enlightening and effective not only in educating the students but teachers as well. I learned so much about the issues and how to identify bullies. One of the responses to a bully was to have a friend that will stand with you and refuting the bully's words by saying the opposite about the bullied person back to the bully. It kind of defuses their power. I am now, a Senior Citizen, working for a Multi- million dollar foreign car company and see bullying going on from supervisors and team mates in the open office. Working in this Call Center environment you are EXPECTED to take bullying from the customer calling in as well. So Bullying by way of over supervising and managing, intimidating by way of public exhibits of performance levels(daily emails showing where you rank with everyone else's daily performance- in the effort to promote competitiveness- to everyone on the team), just a few ways and managing you by way of threats of being fired if you don't measure up in one area of competency when you excel in other areas constitutes bullying in my book. Leading to open bullying verbally by team mates and belittling their value or rights for the sake of a laugh from others, within earshot of the Supervisor who only comments "Now come on guys." It hurts my heart to hear and see and experience this in the world. I've been trying to find another job, but am finding that "Ageism" has kicked in and past experience as a manager of up to 30 students in a classroom doesn't constitute the ability to work in the business world as a manager, so I take entry level positions, where you have to prove yourself in a call center meeting NUMBER metrics not Person metrics(performance on customer surveys, of which the majority are All 10s). Business Values NUMBERS not people.

As a supervisor i stood up for someone who was bullied and i became a target as a result

This is a serious problem, but what's being done about it? Nothing...... I've lived this twice and it has destroyed my life. Who cares? No One...There is no integrity at the workplace. I was told that the company had a policy against harassment, but what good is it when the person who is suppose to report it, is apart of it. I can't even tell the truth in a interview about why I left my last job because I will be considered a trouble employee and they won't hire me. Where does the bullying end even when you are forced to leave? The answer, it doesn't....

"Fail to honor people, and they will fail to honor you!" Lao Tzu

Thank you for this lecture! I have endured this for 26 years as a female in the fire service, where I believe many Type A Bullying personalities lie. I have made it through, with constant bullying, back stabbing, and derogatory statements. I have PTSD due to this as well as issues with confidence but I know now that I am okay and I will be the better person because of it. I loved the statement that the CEO is also the bully because he/she condones it and often is one. My organization has so many of them in the command staff that it would be difficult to talk about just one of them. Ironically, now some of the bullies are being bullied by younger bullies. Thank you God for a pension and a way out.

I've had depression and anxiety already from child hood trauma then put in a place where bullying is highly excepted even cheered I was getting so so sick. There was no understanding of my afflictions in the first place just ridicule and abuse.

Thank you for confirming the very thing I have been saying for years. The company that finally understands what workplace bullying and harassment is and eradicates it and all other "office politics" (weak terminology for workplace harassment), will be the company that attracts and retains the best and brightest employees, and thus will be the most efficient, innovative and profitable company.  Regrettably, I do not think I will ever see this in my career or lifetime, as it seems that sociopaths in the workplace is on a steady increase with no signs of any reversal.  I have been the target of a workplace sociopaths (workplace bullying) at my last three places of employment. As Andrew had mentioned, the main reason for the sociopath to target me was that they saw me as a threat. The workplace sociopath (bully) will always target those that are more talented, knowledgeable or hard working, unless the more talented, knowledgeable or hard working person capitulates to the sociopath (bully), often doing the work and coming up with innovative ideas, yet allowing the sociopath (bully) to have the credit and recognition. I believe that some people are born a sociopath (narcissistic and having little or no empathy) and some learn sociopathic traits (I have read books that call this learned psychopathy). Many colleges / universities today instill the sociopathic ideals to students. Interestingly, I had seen video from Harvard Business School that taught people who to better "play the office politics". What Harvard should be teaching is how to eradicate office politics from the workplace.