The office Backstabber

Unless you work on a deserted island, dealing with people is a fact of life. Backstabbing is one of the biggest and common issues in the workplace. Never overlook the damage Backstabbers can do. Do not ignore their behavior. If you do, it just reinforces their control and their negative behavior. They won’t change, because this Backstabber behavior has worked for them in the past.

One thing to keep in mind, backstabbers is very low people in the society. Yes, being backstabbed is very painful.

So how to identify them. A backstabber is usually a very close friend, yet this friend is actually an enemy. Such an enemy is much harder to identify, never mind to overcome.

Identifying backstabbers:
1. See how they treated others: other friends, people of lower social status, their family members, people they don't like.

2. See what happens when people do a serious mistake to them.

3. See, when people of "no use to them" ask for help, do they help the those people? If they do bad to those people, they might be a potential backstabbers.

If they often talk bad about someone to you, beware. They might as well talk about your bad sides to other people.

How to deal with them:
- If you know of someone who is doing things to jeopardize your livelihood, try to get all the facts you can so that you can eventually dispute any wrong information. Never get emotional. You need to stay calm and logical. Your boss will look much more favorably to a cool, well-collected individual who is able to present the facts without bringing any personal issues to the table.

- Especially if the backstabber is circulating rumors and gathering people against you, you should try to get some people on your side as well. Let them know exactly what is happening and try to gain some sympathy. These friends will can not only help in giving you some moral comfort, but possibly also help to dispel rumors or false information about you.

- Try to be on good terms with your immediate supervisor, manager, and those higher up as well. It's a lot harder for a backstabber to kill you off when you have friends in high places.

- It's also possible to confront the backstabber, but be careful about this as it could further ignite the situation. You could politely ask about certain facts, but do not get personal.

Stay cool