• Question: What happens when you do not get along with a fellow scientist but you must work together, what do you do to help you cope?

    Asked by anon-224967 to Simon, Selen, Paul, Nawapat, Natalie, Katy on 14 Nov 2019.
    • Photo: Katy Bruce

      Katy Bruce answered on 14 Nov 2019:

      Wow, what a considered question! I’m very fortunate in that I have a fantastic supervisor who I’ve always seen eye to eye with. Also, unlike a lot of my friends at uni, I don’t work in a synthetic lab group, I work alone so this is rarely a problem for me. I realise that answer isn’t helpful though so perhaps I could speculate…
      I suppose the main thing to remember is that colleagues are people you work with, not necessarily people you have chosen to have around you. The priority in the workplace is to maintain professionalism, rise above any disagreements and get the job done. There’s plenty of time outside of work to vent to your friends and family; they are the people who care about you the most 🙂

    • Photo: Simon Brown

      Simon Brown answered on 14 Nov 2019:

      On top of other things, I’m a mental first-aider. So my answer is get support.
      There is no place for bullying – whether you are at school or at work. A disagreement is ok but you should always be civil and professional. If that breaks down, a good employer, university, school or college will have policies and procedures in place to deal with the situation.

      Never, NEVER, suffer in silence. Seek support

    • Photo: Natalie Fowler

      Natalie Fowler answered on 14 Nov 2019:

      It is a fact of life that you will end up meeting and working with people who aren’t your type of person. The best thing is to be nice and kind, it says more about your personality! If it’s inappropriate behavior and you feel uncomfortable you should never be afraid to escalate this to supervisors and managers. Variety is what makes us as a species so interesting, so my advice would be try to learn about the other people! Find some common ground maybe?

    • Photo: Paul Laurance-Young

      Paul Laurance-Young answered on 14 Nov 2019:

      You have to be sensible about it, you’re there to do a job. You’re not going to like everyone and they won’t always like you. As long as you both respect the boundaries, you should avoid treading on each other’s toes. Having said that, when people do step out of line, that’s when managers employer processes step in, to ensure fairness for everyone. Speak out. Never put up with unfair treatment.

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