Been on this team for a few years now, and we had a new teammate join us not too long ago. All she does is complain about everything and its starting to take a toll on me. I’ve talked to my manager about it, but nothing is changing. I’ve called her out by saying im not interested since it’s not related to work.
When we’re in office, she will just spend her whole day complaining to me about every little thing going on in her life. Her husband, her husbands friends, other teams, other coworkers, etc. The list is just crazy, that i’m just surprised how much she can complain. In any case, I see her the most since we’re working on the same project and she tends to be in office when im there.
tl;dr: Coworker complains about her personal life and its starting to take a toll on me.
What can I do?
4 comments
Tell her to shut up lol
“That sounds like a tough time. Look, I’m sorry but I don’t have that much time to stay and chat. I have work to get to. See you next time.” Is fine.
This may or may not help you deal with it, but for some people, complaining is how they try to bond with other people – its weird and maladaptive, but she’s probably trying to commiserate with people.
Aside from continuing to escalate with your managers, telling her directly to knock it off is really your only other option.
Grey rock her. Lots of “Mmm” and “Uh-huh” and “Oops, gotta go water my cactus”. Be as boring as possible and she’ll realise she’s not getting the attention she desires.