Techniques to use in working with Difficult People

This is a good article on tactics and communication techniques when working with co-workers who create issues in the workplace.

The Thing That Drives Me Nuts About My Co-Worker
http://msn.careerbuilder.com/custom/msn/careeradvice/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=1566

QUOTE: For many people, bad habits are unconscious. John might not realize that clipping his fingernails in the lunchroom is repulsive. Suzy is clueless that coffee was not made to be slurped and Ed doesn't know that showering only three times per week is unhygienic (and stinky!).

Let's be honest: Nobody's perfect; not even you. Results from a recent MSN Zogby data poll show that 20 percent of workers say their co-workers have at least one habit that drives them crazy. So while your co-worker might have a more obvious bothersome tendency (like always talking on speakerphone), maybe your constant complaining about everyone else's behaviors has the same effect.

"You really only have one option when it comes to being annoyed by a fellow employee," says Donna Flagg, president of The Krysalis Group, a business and management consulting firm in New York City. "Simply let your co-worker know how you feel and politely ask them if they would mind curtailing their annoying habit."

Techniques for addressing co-worker issues

1. Ask yourself if the behavior is better described as controlled or a recurring pattern
2. Check yourself
3. Be discreet
4. Be specific
5. Be positive