Managing a Lazy Employee

Lackadaisical. Laggard. Asleep on the job. Shiftless. Loafer. Sluggard. Goof off. Slothful. Lethargic. Slouch. Slug. Couch potato. Slacker.

Have you ever noticed how many different ways we can describe a person who is lazy? Perhaps we have developed this extensive language of laziness because it is such a common and exasperating human characteristic. We’ve all witnessed laziness in others. Sometimes we have had to pick up the slack for lazy people who didn’t do what they were supposed to do. Some of us have had to teach our children not to be lazy and have found the task to be hugely frustrating. And many of us have had to fight our own desire to be lazy, at least on some occasions. It’s fair to say that most of us have had those days when we would rather be lounging on a beach or when we would rather sleep in than get up and get going on a busy work day.

There is no room for laziness in the medical practice.

That said, there is no room for laziness in the medical practice. Obvious problems occur when lazy employees drag their feet to get needed work done. The work will not be done well, on time, or at all, and others in the practice will be inconvenienced by the laziness. More importantly, a lazy employee, left unchecked, can spark a culture of laziness in the medical practice team. Other employees who see a slacking coworker get away with doing less work are unlikely to continue their own efforts at full tilt, at least not for very long. As Root(1) suggests, “Coworkers who are forced to make up for the lazy employee’s lack of effort can get resentful. Morale and productivity will drop, and if there is no managerial solution to the problem, then other employees will also fall into lazy habits.”

Laziness is contagious.

In short, laziness is contagious. And certainly, lazy employees can be a source of frustration for managers and coworkers. Whether the employee spends more time checking his or her personal email and social media than doing work, takes extended breaks, or magically disappears when you need him or her, a lazy employee’s actions will put a damper on productivity and morale. Fortunately, there are a number of strategies that can help. Be forewarned, however, that sometimes you may need to come on hard and strong, but that that is not always the case. As Xi(2) suggests, “Dealing with the situation effectively might require a gentle touch.” The place to begin is in understanding what’s behind a lazy employee’s behavior.

Understanding Laziness

A person is being lazy if he or she is able to carry out some activity that he or she ought to carry out, but is disinclined to do so because of the effort involved. Instead, he or she carries out the activity perfunctorily. Or he or she does nothing, or engages in another less strenuous, less boring, or more fun activity. As Burton(3) suggests, a person is lazy if his motivation to spare himself effort “trumps his motivation to do the right or expected thing.”

Fear of success also may lead to laziness.

Many lazy people may not have always been so. They may be lazy because they have not found what they want to do with their lives. Or they may know what they want to do but, for a number of reasons, are not doing it. This can happen when a person decides not to follow a dream and takes a steady job instead, out of necessity or simply to be practical. In some instances, a person can become lazy situationally because he or she doesn’t fully grasp or value the work. Burton suggests that this can happen when a person perceives his or her job as abstract and not applicable to bettering people’s lives or making an important difference.

Fear of success also may lead to laziness. Some people do not have sufficient self-esteem to feel comfortable with their own success. As Burton(3) explains, “Laziness is one way they can sabotage themselves.” Hopelessness can also cause a person to be lazy. The very concept of laziness presupposes the ability to choose not to be lazy. It assumes the existence of free will. If a person does not have hope, he or she may not believe that his or her effort or actions will make any difference. In the minds of some lazy people, things will be what they are no matter what. When that kind of thinking sets in, a “why bother?” attitude is usually not far behind.

Begin with Your Own Management

Look to your own management before taking a firm disciplinary approach with a lazy employee. Ask yourself, “Have I made my expectations clear?” Without clearly defined expectations for performance, lazy employees may not realize that they’re lazy. In fact, they may think that what they’re doing on the job is good enough. Or they may even believe, mistakenly, that they’re doing a great job.

Before you decide that a lazy employee requires disciplinary intervention, review the measurable performance indicators that you’ve established and shared with your team. Do you set measurable daily or weekly goals? Does each employee know precisely the performance you expect of him or her? If not, the problem may not be one of laziness but of misdirection. If you suspect that that may be the cause of the laziness, take steps to clarify the measurable performance you expect of each employee and give everyone time to get up to speed.

If your expectations are measurable and clear to everyone, consider next whether they are reasonable and whether your team members have the resources needed to achieve their goals. Being tasked with a job that seems hopeless or impossible can lead to lazy performance. Very few people will continue to work to capacity if they believe that what they do will be an insignificant drop in an ocean of unreasonable demands. Make sure that your performance goals are challenging, but attainable.

Next, think about whether you have been clear with the members of your medical practice team about the consequences for consistently falling short of their goals. Some employees’ natural inclination will be to do as little as possible, given the choice. So if it seems they have a choice to keep their jobs or even to earn raises without much effort, that’s the path they may choose. Be sure that you are linking measurable performance to your salary reviews, to opportunities for promotions, and to each team member’s continued employment in your medical practice. As Root(1) points out, “Even a lazy employee wants to avoid losing his job.”

Next, consider whether the laziness could be stemming from boredom. Doing the same job for a very long time without much change can be boring and sap the employee’s energy and spirit. Xi suggests that lazy employees may be motivated to work harder when you give them more tasks that fit their idea of “interesting work.” Get the employee to talk with you about his or her interests and try to find tasks for him or her that would be more interesting. Give the lazy employee a new assignment outside of his or her everyday responsibilities. As Root(1) suggests, “Getting a lazy employee involved in something other than her standard work routine can help stimulate her interest in work and motivate her to be productive.” Cross train your employees not only so you have a backup plan if a member of the team is absent, but also so the work remains fresh and interesting for everyone. And, while consistency is important, look for ways to shake things up every now and then. Have a special theme day in your practice, surprise your staff with a catered lunch one day, or invite a special guest to speak at your next staff meeting. Chances are that if the lazy employee is bored, others may be too.

Next, consider whether the laziness is a new behavior. If so, do you know of anything that has changed in the employee’s life, good or bad, that may be causing the laziness? Could he or she be distracted or depressed? If you can’t pinpoint a personal change, next consider whether you have made any changes within the practice recently that may have caused the employee’s laziness. For example, Xi(2) suggests that some people, when faced with an unwanted change or a daunting new task, may “shirk their responsibilities or cling to their old ways out of fear or frustration.” Have you seen an increase in laziness that you can link to new ways of doing things in your practice or to an unwanted change in policy or personnel? In such cases, you will need to talk about the behavior you’re observing and allow employees a safe place to speak their minds. In addition, you may need to provide additional customized training to help fearful or overwhelmed employees overcome their trepidations and temporary lazy performance caused by unwanted change. Or if the cause of the laziness is a personal one, you may need to refer the employee to resources in your community that can help.

Finally, assess whether the employee brought his or her lazy attitude to your workplace and if you did an inadequate job of screening out a potentially poorly performing employee. If so, review your employment screening process. Perhaps you didn’t ask the right questions, or you didn’t check the employee’s references. Or perhaps you will want to institute working interviews as a way to assess a job candidate’s work ethic. Make changes to the way you screen job candidates to ensure that you don’t hire an already lazy employee again. Then, take steps to change or fire the lazy employee you’ve already got on your team.

Dealing Effectively with Lazy Employees: Ten Strategies

If you’ve done everything you can to prevent or deter laziness in your practice and employee laziness persists, it is time for you to take action. The following 10 strategies will help you deal firmly and effectively with a lazy employee:

1. Seek an explanation. Describe specifically what you’ve observed, and give the lazy employee a chance to tell his or her side of the story. Then require your employee to explain to you why his or her subpar work does not meet your medical practice’s standards, in his or her own words. Assess whether the employee grasps the problem.

2. Assess the potential or hopelessness of the situation. Does the lazy employee blame others or circumstances beyond his or her control for the lazy performance, even though you have evidence to the contrary? If so, steer the conversation away from the past and toward what the employee plans to do to improve things in the future. Determine whether he or she is willing to improve his or her performance. If the employee clearly is not, issue your requisite three warnings and fire him or her as soon as possible. However, if you believe that the employee owns the problem and is willing to change his or her lackluster ways, give him or her a chance to change.

3. Begin small. Help the lazy employee establish a few short-term, achievable goals, and tell him or her that that’s what you’re doing and why. As Heathfield(4) suggests, “These should be time-based and have clear outcomes about which you agree.” These initial new performance goals, like all performance goals for your staff, should be measurable and time-specific. Some of these goals can address employee attitude in behavioral terms. Even so, they should still be clear and time-based and linked to observable, measurable behaviors. Make sure that the employee knows that these are just initial goals and that more challenging goals will follow, until his or her performance is consistently where it needs to be.

4. Monitor the employee’s progress. Follow up to ensure that the lazy employee is working toward achieving his or her specified performance goals. If he or she does not succeed, issue your first formal, written warning and try again. If he or she does meet or exceed the initial goals, establish new, more challenging goals and follow up. Keep doing this until the employee’s performance is up to speed, and continue following up.

5. Institute a check-in, check-out time system. Track your employees’ times to the minute for coming to and leaving work, breaks, and lunch. As Root(1) warns, “One of the traits of a lazy employee is that she comes to work late, takes extra breaks, extends lunch breaks, leaves early and calls in for unscheduled days off.” Scrutinize your time sheets and enforce your attendance policy.

6. Be more visible. Pop in unexpectedly. As Root(5) points out, “Some employees require a higher level of supervision than others.” If you have a lazy employee, try spending more time with all of the members of your staff. Get out and interact with your employees more often. Discuss their daily tasks and the longer-term projects they are working on. As Root(5) explains, “By keeping a closer watch on the entire team, you can help the under-performing employee to be more productive while making him feel like he is getting the same attention as the rest of the staff.”

7. Monitor how your employees are using your computers. Let your employees know that as far as their time at work is concerned, they should have no expectation of privacy in their use of your computers and that they are subject to monitoring at all times. Patrick(6) suggests that you install computer monitoring software on the office computers your staff uses. Monitor the software regularly and as needed to see which websites your employees are visiting, when, and for how long. Remind employees that work time is for work and that spending time on other activities is not permitted. Document any online activities that are inappropriate during work hours, such as doing homework for a course, running a side business, visiting websites that have nothing to do with work, playing games, shopping, and engaging in personal social media. Finally, do not allow your employees to use their personal devices during work hours. Keep your eyes peeled for infractions.

8. Discuss any lingering problems with the employee. However, prior to a discussion with a lazy employee, have documented proof of his or her indiscretions. Use your check-in/check-out log to show how the employee was consistently late and left early. Share complaints from coworkers, keeping them anonymous. Avoid confrontation and do not use the word lazy, because that can put the employee on the defensive. Instead, speak in terms of appropriate and inappropriate behavior and your medical practice’s standards. Be specific about the job duties and measurable performance you expect, and precisely what the employee needs to do to improve, and by when.

9. Continue to issue formal warnings, and document them. Gather evidence that would prove, if that becomes necessary, that you clearly described measurable performance to the employee and that he or she fell short. If you must eventually fire a lazy employee, make sure that you have indisputable evidence and, if appropriate, witnesses to support your decision. Such evidence will be invaluable in your defense if you are ever charged with a wrongful discharge suit.

10. Fire the incorrigibly lazy employee. If you’ve managed, mentored, and warned the lazy employee at least three times that his or her job is in peril, but nothing changes, it’s time to fire him or her. Just be sure you have your documentation in place and move forward. However, if you see some improvement and decide to keep the employee awhile longer, do so cautiously. Keep your eyes peeled. The changes may not stick. According to Baker(7), “Lazy employees are [often] lazy for reasons that are beyond your control. You can work with them, but they always go back to being lazy.”

References

1. Root GN. Creative ways to deal with a lazy employee. Chron. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/creative-ways-deal-lazy-employee-15540.html . Accessed September 20, 2016.

2. Xi T. How to manage lazy employees. eHow. www.ehow.com/how_2069319_manage-lazy-employees.html. Accessed September 20, 2016.

3. Burton N. The psychology of laziness. Psychology Today. October 25, 2014. www.psychologytoday.com/blog/hide-and-seek/201410/the-psychology-laziness . Accessed September 20, 2016.

4. Heathfield SM. How to manage a deadbeat employee. The Balance. July 1, 2016. www.thebalance.com/how-to-manage-a-deadbeat-employee-1918712 . Accessed September 26, 2016.

5. Root G. How a good manager handles a lazy employee. Chron. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/good-manager-handles-lazy-employee-15803.html . Accessed September 21, 2016.

6. Patrick M. How to control my lazy staff. Chron. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/control-lazy-staff-25569.html . Accessed September 21, 2016.

7. Baker S. The consequences of lazy employees. Acacia HR Solutions. October 10, 2012. www.acaciahrsolutions.com/the-consequences-of-lazy-employees/ . Accessed September 2016.

Fifteen Do’s and Don’ts for Dealing with a Lazy Coworker

Do you work with someone who takes long lunch breaks and makes dozens of personal calls? Does this person frequent the restroom or surf the Web all day, while you hustle to keep up with your daily workload? If so, the following do’s and don’ts will help you deal effectively with both your lazy coworker and your frustration:

1. Do talk to your lazy coworker directly. Be thoughtful and sensitive, but speak truthfully. As Green(1) suggests, “If you think your coworker might not realize the impact his or her laziness is having on you, or if you think she can be shamed into pulling her own weight if she’s called out on her behavior, consider having a direct conversation.” Be specific about the corrections you’ve had to make and everything else you’ve had to do to pick up the slack.

2. Do stay focused. Don’t keep tabs on what your lazy coworker is doing or not doing minute by minute. Focus your attention and energy on your own work.

3. Do accept that life isn’t fair. If you focus on the unfairness of your situation, you will end up making yourself feel even worse. Take pride in being the best you can be.

4. Do decide who you want to be in your life. Who are your role models? How self-motivated and hardworking are they? Chances are the people you admire most are not lazy.

5. Don’t become hostile. You may find that a lazy coworker tests your patience. You may be tempted to be less than pleasant. However, hostility won’t improve the situation and can make it worse. According to Smith,(2) “A hostile employee is just as bad as a lazy one.”

6. Don’t enable your lazy coworker. If you consistently take up your coworker’s slack, you’ll make it easier for the problem to go unnoticed and continue. Without realizing it, you may encourage and reinforce more lazy behavior. Therefore, Green suggests that you politely decline your lazy coworker’s request for help with work that he or she should do. For instance, you might say, “I wish I could help, but I’ve got my hands full.” Furthermore, if a lazy coworker keeps pushing tasks from his or her plate to yours, push them right back. Don’t fall for flattery. Don’t get caught up in a fabricated sob story. And don’t agree with the argument that you’re faster or better at the task at hand, so you’re the best person to do it. Make it hard for your lazy coworker to use you to skirt work.

7. Do speak up, but don’t tattle. Tattling is telling on others when their behavior is not affecting you. Do speak up when it does. For example, tell your boss how your coworker’s laziness is prohibiting you from doing your job. Say, “I can’t go any further with this project because I’m waiting for Sarah to finish her part. What can we do about this?”

8. Don’t be lured into the laziness. Lazy coworkers sometimes seek playmates. If a lazy employee invites you to a long lunch or needless trips to the restroom to chat, say that you’re busy.

9. Do speak up when a lazy coworker’s work becomes your responsibility. Explain to your boss how doing both jobs is affecting your ability to do what you’re supposed to do. For example, do you often need to stay late and accrue overtime because you have to pick up the slack for a lazy coworker? Are there times when you are unable to get to everything done on your to-do list because of the additional work you have to do?

10. Don’t let the blame fall on you. If your boss asks why the work isn’t getting done, explain it to him or her.

11. Do step into leadership. See if you can lead the lazy employee into working harder. Talk about your own work ethic and encourage him or her to take pride in the work you’re doing.

12. Don’t gossip or complain. Neither is productive and both are unprofessional. Ultimately, griping and telling stories will reflect badly on you.

13. Do be clear with your lazy coworker. Make sure the problem is laziness and not a lack of clarity about tasks and deadlines. If you’re in doubt, ask your coworker to tell you what he or she thinks is expected and by when.

14. Do take chronic laziness into your planning. As Smith suggests, “Don’t say yes to projects that require your [lazy] co-worker to work at full capacity.” If your boss wants you to go full steam ahead with the lazy employee in tow, say something like this: “Given the pace of Dan’s work, I don’t think he’ll deliver what we’ll need in the time frame we’ll need it.” Smith suggests that this is a “non-aggressive” way to raise the issue of the lazy coworker’s performance to your boss.

15. Don’t assume you know what’s going on behind the scenes. As Green suggests, “While it’s easy to assume that nothing is being done about your lazy coworker, you’re unlikely to know that that’s true.” Managers don’t typically broadcast disciplinary actions or coaching to other people, and most employees don’t go around bragging that they were just warned their job is in jeopardy if they don’t shape up. While it’s possible that nothing is being done, it’s important to remember that that’s not information you’d likely be privy to. Don’t jump to conclusions.

References

1. Green A. 6 Steps for dealing with a lazy co-worker. U.S. News/Money. October 6, 2014. http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2014/10/06/6-steps-for-dealing-with-a-lazy-co-worker . Accessed September 22, 2016.

2. Smith J. 12 Tips for dealing with a lazy co-worker. Forbes. August 1, 2013. www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2013/08/01/12-tips-for-dealing-with-a-lazy-co-worker/#100fab83dc91 . Accessed September 22, 2016.
   

Five Suggestions for Overcoming Laziness

It can be very tempting to give in to our desire to be lazy. However, being lazy can be draining and depressing. As Blikman(1) warns, “Although laziness is common and a natural part of life, it has the potential to completely consume us.” Here are five suggestions to help you fight your own temptation to be lazy, or to share with a lazy employee:

1. Focus on just a few things at a time. As Blikman suggests, “People feel motivated when they feel they have a good chance of success.” Establish two or three achievable goals at a time, and you will notice that you will naturally gain inspiration and motivation, Blikman says.

2. Exercise. According to Blikman, “Exercise will help you break through that barrier of inertia and will help you feel motivated and more willing to put in effort.”

3. Allow yourself time to relax and do the things you enjoy. When we feel more satisfied in our lives, we are more willing to take on bigger tasks and achieve bigger results. As Blikman explains, “When I relax, I suddenly find myself thinking of all these great ideas and I regain inspiration and motivation.”

4. Get organized. It’s hard to find inspiration and motivation when we’re surrounded by a mess. Clean your house and organize your physical surroundings, and you will naturally feel motivated to be more productive and active, Blikman says. You will be making life simpler and easier to manage, so you have more of yourself to put into your work.

5. Be aware of and monitor your self-talk. According to Blikman, we have over 50,000 thoughts a day. Even if only 10% of them are negative, that equals a total of 5000 negative thoughts a day. Says Blikman, “When I heard this, I realized that we have way too many negative thoughts and it helped make sense of why so many of us struggle to feel motivated.” Be grateful for the gifts you have been given and keep your thoughts positive, Blikman says. Interesting: Blikman also suggests that you improve your posture. “I make a choice to get rid of my slouchy posture and tell myself that I have lots of energy,” Blikman says. This strategy can help you feel excited and give you a boost of energy, Blikman suggests.

Reference

1. Blikman C. 5 Ways to get energized and motivated when you feel lazy. Tiny Buddha. http://tinybuddha.com/blog/5-ways-get-energized-motivated-feel-lazy/ . Accessed September 26, 2016.

Mentorship Program Can Bring Lazy Employees Up to Speed

If laziness is a problem in your medical practice team, you may be able to turn things around by implementing a mentorship program. According to Hirsch,(1) high-performing members of your staff may be able to guide lazy employees toward better performance. Hirsch suggests that you pair your laziest employee with your best senior employee. “With any luck, your employee will flourish under this new lease of guidance,” he says.

Of course, you’ll need to check both the progress of your mentoring program and the lazy employee’s performance to know if things are getting better. Says Hirsch, “If it works well, you could use it as a long-term strategy.”

Reference

1. Hirsch S. How to deal with lazy staff members. Berkeley Market. January 19, 2015. http://berkeleymarket.com/how-to-deal-with-lazy-staff-members/. Accessed September 26, 2016.

Laziness: Innate Trait or Learned Behavior?

When you see huge differences in the productivity and energy of staff members, you may wonder whether some people are simply born lazy. According to Levine,(1) the answer to that question is a resounding no. Says Levine, “Laziness is not an innate trait. We are all born with drive to produce, and like saplings growing in an orchard, we have within us the resources to bear fruit, to be and to feel useful and effective.”

In fact, we are born with a natural desire to accomplish, Levine says. Recognition and self-satisfaction are basic human drives. From early childhood on through our adult years, we gain energy and feel good about ourselves whenever our personal output wins approval. However, Levine warns that some individuals lose momentum somewhere along the way. In the pursuit of accomplishment, they fail to produce. They stall out. Or they don’t receive the approval they seek. And from this, they learn lazy behavior.

According to Levine, every employee would like to generate output that merits a raise, promotion, and praise. Therefore when an employee’s output is too low, Levine suggests that managers refrain from accusing and blaming. Instead, he encourages managers to focus on what may be thwarting that employee’s output, what may be obstructing his or her “natural inborn inclination to produce.”

Reference

1. Levine M. The Myth of Laziness. New York: Simon & Schuster; 2003.