Favoritism In The Workplace

Work is most important part of our life just because it not only moulds our career but also precious hours of investment go into it. Everyone wants a fair deal from life and their work but problem comes when one starts to experience favoritism or bias in the workplace. Considering everything to be static the preference given to one individual over the other generally is the moderate case of favoritism. It is worse if one is more capable than other but still being denied opportunities or downplayed by virtue of biasness or favoritism in the workplace. The presence of favoritism or bias in the organization has not only the potential to affect the working environment but the moral of the employees too.

There are people who are equal and then there are people who are more equal than others. No matter how much organizations deny, favoritism does persists in many forms. However there can be the chances of perception too and hence this is the reason this post has been written to analyze the problem from all angles. Below are some areas that you can ponder on before you go ahead and decide on your situation.

1) Is it for Real- One of the important question you need to ask yourself is – Is it for real? Sometimes you are made to believe that the favoritism exists but truth can be much different. The reason can be because of nature of jobs, profiles etc. But somehow we tend to believe that we are not given equal importance and that our Boss and management are not happy with us. It may happen that they share equal concern but just because we think that we need a different treatment, we tend to believe the presence of favoritism in the workplace.

2) Why there is a Bias- Even if favoritism persists, have you ever thought the reason behind it. When performance and efficiency of the employees are concerned, people do get inclined towards those who can beat others. Yes, performers are preferred and they would continuously be pampered across. So if you are not able to beat others in the competitive environment and try to hide behind the pretext of favoritism then you need to think again.

3) Is it Affecting You- Considering your concerns are genuine and you are still experiencing favoritism in the workplace, the next big question comes- Is It Affecting you? People can craft their own stories and enjoy their own pursuits but the main thing that you need to asses is its effects on you. If you are getting what you deserve and there is no major impact on you then you are good to go. Remember, favoritism exists at all places and escaping it is not an option. Either you got to change the circumstances or need to adjust with it to the best of your advantage.

4) What Best You Can Do- The best solution against favoritism is to increase the level of performance and let the numbers speak for you. Things get noticed and there is no way it is easier for management or your boss to ignore your performance and give the credit to someone else. You need to much valuable for your organization that it becomes difficult for them to ignore you. The added advantage of performance is that you would yourself become much sought after and would not experience the bias in your organization.

5) The Option of Quitting- If everything fails and you believe that it is affecting your career then the option of quitting is always with you. However before you decide on that, you need to asses if there is anything you need change in yourself and your personality before calling it a day. Favoritism exists at almost all places at varied level and at times you need to make change in yourself rather than seeking it in others. However if you are convinced that favoritism or bias prevails at much dirty level and there is no more hope left then it is better to seek change in your job rather than to live the rotten life and ruin your career.

It is important for the organizations also to monitor the level of favoritism that exists and its nature. The Organization that provides a growth environment is most sought after just because their policies focus more on the abilities of the person. At an individual level too one need to be impartial while judging the existence of favoritism or bias in the organization. The best option is the one that not only leads to your personal growth but the growth in your career too.

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