being compared to the newbies in my dept.

so my manager had another one on one with me today. and once again she compared me to my other coworkers who are relatively new on the job. she said you are making more mistakes than they are, and you really need to pay
attention to detail, something that has been issue the last 3 to 4 years. she said you have been here 14 years now and your production should be at high capacity and not making any errors.

i am bored with my job, i have tried looking for other positions in the company but getting no replies....my mind does tend to wander at work if something is bothering me.

i guess looking for tips on how to pay more attention to my work, how to stop my mind wandering, and how to not let her comments bring me down cause right now i feel really low in confidence right now, this is an entry level job and i feel like my anxiety has held me back from moving upwards... i know the higher the level the more stress. and i don't handle stress very well.

thanks in advance

I know what you mean. Story time. I was 'let go' from a job where I butted heads with another guy who also had untreated bipolar. He drank constantly and was a real *** so we did not get along. After 4 years and the third time to HR they decided to let us both go.
It was such a relief to not have to work with him anymore. But then I couldn't find another job at the same pay as I had been making. I had to take a huge pay cut and work at an entry level job.
So yeah this entry level job sucked. It was menial, repetitive work. A couple times I feel I tried to take on more and show what I could really do but my boss and coworker both felt threatened somehow and they put me in my place. I was so miserable. For a while my boss layed into me, made me do menial tasks. I had to just suck it up because I couldn't get another job.
Then I figured out how to change my perspective. I realized my job was a piece of cake and that made me relax some. I focused on doing my job and doing it well. It wasn't fulfilling, which was really hard, but I did get some satisfaction from a job well done.
I started my job search again. After a year I FINALLY got another job. Because of my anxiety and low self esteem I didn't interview that well so they hired me at another entry level position instead of the mid position I was shooting for. At that job I had to again suck it up but it was alot easier because there was alot of work to do and it was interesting and challenging. So I just dove in and did my job to the best of my ability. The boss saw that I was compentent and gave me more projects and after two years I was promoted. Then promoted again a year later, and then again a year later.
So the moral is if you suck it up and do the best job you can, in time people will notice and you will be acknowledged and rewarded.

OMG. When I read your thread I thought I was reading about myself; I too have worked at my job for 12 years and am being compared with the newer workers; and told of my shortcomings and production level. I too have been called into an office with a Supervisor or Manager 4/6 business days. I am an overachiever, except no mistakes from myself; and what they do not know is I have already been way tougher on myself then they could ever be; and comparing me to someone else; just adds water to my sinking boat.

hi ght
thanks for your reply, my mind tends to wander alot so i acknowledge i need to stay more focused at work, and i really need to work on paying attention to detail again that is where getting my mind focused on work rather than on home life or anything else.

this an entry level job and i have been stuck in that spot for 14 years, but i also have fears taking on a higher level position because of more responsibilities and stress.... the job pays ok , i stay because the benfits are good and i get 4 weeks vacation time as well. what bothered me is her comparing me to newer people and she also knows that i do suffer from general anxiety which can peak at times... anyways nobody in my dept likes her so i guess we just have to suck it up and be grateful we do have a full time job.

anyways thanks again for your reply, i was hoping more would reply but
maybe they don't know what to say.

take care

What type of work do you do?

hi reb
i am a customer service rep... i do acknowledge i have been making more mistakes than i should... i need to work on keeping my mind focused on work. but it just bothered me her comparing me to newer people. she said we need to find ways to get your confidence back, her comparing me does not help.

I tend to have focus issues at work myself. I am lucky however because I am not "tied" to my desk. I can get up and walk around any time I want to, and I know from past experience that generally a customer service rep is required to be available at all times and only has breaks to get up and move around.

What has helped me when I get really distracted is walking, I get up walk to the break room to top off my coffee, maybe a quick walk outside depending on weather. It helps me get the distracting thoughts out of my mind and be able to force myself to concentrate on what I have to do.

During your lunch break and other breaks, what do you do? If you don't already, try to walk. Have you tried grounding or relaxation techniques?

Additionally, time of day. Do you tend to be less prone to distractions at different times of day? Is there a possibility of working a different shift, and possibly even for a different supervisor?

Hi Sunshine
sorry somehow i missed your post, attention to detail...hahahha as my manager says, i too am a perfectionist to some extent, if i make mistakes i come hard on myself for making them even though we are all human at the end of the day.

And yes being compared to does not make it any easier. thanks for replying

Hi Reb
i am not tied down to a desk either in the sense that i don't have to take phone calls, it is mainly data entry that i do. Yes i have gotten up to stretch or distract myself. I was walking so i need to start that up again. i have heard about GROUNDING alot but not sure exactly what that is.

i work 7am to 3pm right now so i can pick up my kids after school. but i may switch it to 8am to 4pm, now that they are old enough to walk to school and back on their own. so not sure if that would make a big difference.

as for the supervisor unfortnately she has had so many people complain about her lack of people skills yet she is still there because she knows her stuff. the only way to get away from her is to get another position within the company which right now is hard to do.

so i am stuck where i am for now, i did email her today about being compared to other's and she bascially has an answer for everything, she looked up job performance and one of things you are measured against is your work compared to peers :P

so i just have to challenge myself and get my numbers back up NOT FOR HER BUT FOR MYSELF... ...

anyways thanks everyone for the replies, in the end i am still grateful to have a job that helps pay the mortgage and the bills and feed the kiddies etc etc....it could be worse right !!

It's good that you aren't tied down to a desk! I worked for a short time in a call center and hated it! This was a long time ago and I was able to move to different position, with a pay cut, to a job that was more suited to me. Anyway -- I moved on from that company a long time ago.

Grounding is a Mindfulness technique that is meant to bring you back into the here and now. It is often used to help those who are having anxiety attacks or are dissociating, but I believe I've read that it can be used to help with focus. It really just makes you concentrate on the here and now and break away from distracting thoughts or memories. It helps you relax. I've read some pretty good articles on it. I will see if I can find them and send you a PM with the link. There are also some posts about grounding on the forum that came up with a quick search.

hi reb
yes if you find those articles, please do send them to me, i will also check on the search engine here for grounding techniques.

as for my manager i did send her an email and as always she has an answer or comeback for anything we as her employees question her about.... so i am not going to bother trying to further explain myself. but at least i spoke up for myself, something i have had trouble in the past doing with her.

I don't have any advice, but I want to give you a hug and say "keep your chin up"!

Seesaw

I'm adding a link to an article on this site and I pm'd you a link to a pdf that has some grounding techniques listed. https://psychcentral.com/blog/archiv...ss-techniques/