When Are Bad Habits Helpful?

Some bad habits can actually turn out to be helpful. They may cause trouble most of the time. Yet, there are those instances when they seem to fit the situation perfectly. Since most people have at least some bad habits, it is probably good that they have a helpful side.

Some people have bad habits with regards to pointing out others mistakes. They are constantly telling their friends or family members what they are doing wrong. It gets annoying and frustrating for the person being picked on. Quite a bit of resentment can build up over this.

However, there may come a time when the person will actually point out bad habits you have not been aware of before. They may stop you from making a huge mistake. You may not be inclined to fall at their feet and thank them, but you may be glad you heard their criticism nonetheless.

Procrastination is usually one of the most common bad habits. People put off doing what they know they need to do. They plan to do it, just not today. Procrastination can prove to be helpful if the situation changes. If you were planning to water your garden you might procrastinate and put it off until tomorrow. If it rains unexpectedly that night, you have saved both effort and water.

If you complain too much, people will tell you that you have too many bad habits. It does create a negative environment when someone is constantly seeing the worst in everything. However, sometimes the only times you can get anything done are when you complain.

Some bosses manage by the theory that the person that complains the loudest is the person who needs the most attention. In other words, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. When you complain in this situation, you accomplish something.

Working too hard is generally a bad habit. It is bad for your relationships and it is bad for your health. You feel that you will not succeed unless you put in overtime. Mostly, this is not true. Yet, there are times when the extra work can pay off. This is true especially if you allow yourself to indulge this bad habit for only the duration of a short project.

If you are too stubborn, you will be accused of bad habits like demanding to have things the way you see fit. You will not give in until you are satisfied that things are going as they should. This is usually a bad habit. Sometimes, though, it takes the form of tenacity. This is a positive attribute that makes it possible for you to hold on through the hardest of times.

Breaking the law almost always involves bad habits. Theft, drug peddling and use, violence, and many more bad habits come into play. On the other hand, some of the world's greatest heroes have broken the laws of their own countries.

They did it in civil disobedience of laws they deemed unjust or inhumane. The world would be a different place if these people had been afraid of having these "bad habits." That is why not all habits can be strictly labeled bad or good. It has to go by the situation.

Bad Habits in the Workplace

Everyone suffers when someone on the job has bad habits in the workplace. Bad habits can make for an environment that is unfriendly, unproductive, or even unsafe. You can only correct your bad habits in the workplace if you recognize them.

One of the most noticeable bad habits in the workplace is tardiness. Some people just have a habit of being late to everything. They are late to arrive, late back from break, and late back from lunch. This not only puts them in jeopardy of losing their jobs. It can affect the productivity of the whole crew or office.

Absenteeism is another bad habit that people can fall into easily. A new trend is to make all accumulated days off the same. Sick days, personal days, and vacation days are lumped together. You just have a set number of days off and it is up to you how you take them.

The trouble with this system is that too many people have bad habits about using the days off. They get used to taking off whenever they feel like it. Before they know it, all their days off are gone. Then, when they really have an emergency or illness, they have to miss work without pay. In the meantime, their workload is being handled by someone else.

People often have bad habits in the workplace when it comes to paperwork. They do not do proper accounting on their expense reports. They do not keep the receipts that are needed by their company. They fail to keep mileage records on their company cars accurately. This makes the company's accounting department have to work harder.

Many workers have an aversion to doing paperwork at all. They have bad habits of not filling out jobsite reports as needed. If they do special business reports as requested, they may have bad habits about not turning them in on time.

Clean work spaces can help people get more work done. However, many people have bad habits when it comes to keeping their desks and offices neat. They may have a certain kind of organization if they have stacks of papers on their desks. Yet, if their desk is full of half empty pop cans and crumpled up fast food bags, it cannot help anything.

People often get into the bad habit of losing things. They may lose important paperwork. The paperwork may be critical contracts for a major deal the company is involved with. If your bad habits take over, you can cost the company everything.

People in other kinds of jobs can get into the habit of losing tools. They do not pay enough attention when they lay down their tools. When they get ready to clean up for the day, they have no recollection of where they put a particular tool, if they remember using it at all. This is a bad habit that amounts to laziness in thinking.

If you want to make an impression at work, get a grip on your bad habits. The way you work will be a result of the habits you bring to the table. It is the good habits that make you succeed.