Let’s face it:  We don’t always work with people we like.  In fact, we might work with people we don’t like at all.  We may even work with people so crazy that the Richter scale seems to pick up their mood swings, but somehow we have to find ways to still work with them and maintain our sanity.  Although, I hear the mental hospital is accepting applications.

For all of those individuals who say that a psychology major is worth nothing without a Master’s or PhD, let us look at all the ways psychology has helped me continue my job in a sane manner:

We may all work with difficult bosses at some point.  So what do we do? Look up all of their supposed psychological disorders in the DSM-IV, and take pity on them for being so crazy.  Just smile and nod when they say things that don’t add up, all the while thinking how great they’d look wearing a straight-jacket.And later, they may take our smiling and nodding to mean we’re “laid back,” making them appreciate us even more in their not-quite-there mind.

And if your boss isn’t crazy enough to diagnose, there’s always the co-workers.  They may be hypochondriacs, constantly going home sick or trying to go home sick.  They may have narcissistic behaviors, thinking they are the saving grace of the company.

OR, if you’re lucky, they have some obsessive-compulsive behaviors, and end up keeping your entire workspace organized.

Hopefully they have something really fun to diagnose to keep you really busy during any down-time.

If you have subordinates, I think this is the best and most helpful time to understand the inner-workings of people.  Because I have a boss that was not trained properly in management and people skills, I see what works and doesn’t work in the management field.  And then I get to use my knowledge to be the most helpful “teacher/mentor” of my own.

Recently, I’ve been given charge of a high-functioning high school volunteer with a few diagnosed personality disorders.  As we walked the halls, she told me that she had been diagnosed with Asperger’s disorder, bi-polar disorder, and one other disorder that I can’t remember.  (Probably because I suffer from some sort of dementia)

As she was telling me this, I almost wanted to sigh with relief.  FINALLY, a person who is open with all of their personality quirks.

When working with a bunch of crazies, it’s always nice when someone just admits they’re crazy.

So have a ball with the DSM-IV catalog of crazy.  With a little psychological analysis, you can be working with a bunch of compulsive liars and sociopaths.  Congrats!