14 signs that you're a terrible employee — even if it doesn't feel like it

Some employees are better than others, but what if you're the problem worker in your office?
Being a terrible employee doesn't mean that you're bad, lazy, or even unable to succeed professionally. You could be a bad culture fit for the company. Your disposition may not jibe with your boss' style. Maybe you're just in the wrong industry.

If you feel that you're not doing a good job, then it's important to consider why and then take steps to rectify the situation.

Before you can do that, though, you've got to be able to determine whether or not you are a bad worker.
Here are 14 tell-tale signs that you're doing a horrible job at work:

You're not punctual

Whether you're forgetting about important deadlines, barging into meetings late, or crawling into work at random hours, habitual tardiness tells everyone that you simply don't respect their valuable time.

You constantly make excuses

There's a Latin saying that pretty much sums this one up: "Excusatio non petita accusatio manifesta." It roughly translates to "he who excuses himself, accuses himself." Don't rely on excuses to justify your incompetence.

You do the bare minimum

You're just scraping by. You do enough to avoid getting fired and that's it. If your boss asks you to handle something remotely challenging, you react with exasperation. You're not fooling anyone with this act — you risk ruining your reputation with your abysmal work ethic.
 

You love to gossip

Not all gossip is bad. Nonetheless, when it comes to the petty, mean-spirited gab, stay away from the rumor mill — it'll hurt only your reputation.

You're convinced that you're the smartest person in the office

It's good to have confidence and you might be very intelligent in some areas, but no one wants to work with an arrogant colleague. You don't have to dumb your smarts down — just get over yourself a bit.

You don't believe in your company's mission or values

You think your company's goals are dumb. You think your organization's CEO is stupid.
I don't know, maybe you're right. But if you're truly unimpressed with your company, then instead of wasting your time on snark, you should start looking for other work.

You're noticeably less productive than your colleagues

Are all your coworkers super-talented wonder workers? Probably not. You might just be a cut under everyone else.

Your colleagues clearly don't enjoy working with you

Are you getting the sense that no one wants to be around you in the office? That's a problem. It's possible that they all just hate your guts — or they think that you're just too aggressive or incompetent to deal with.

You find yourself regularly apologizing to people

Is it too late now to say sorry? If your daily conversations with your boss, colleagues, or clients starts to sound more like that Justin Bieber song than anything, then you're probably screwing up quite a bit — or you just have an annoying habit

You can't take no for an answer

It's great to be confident in your ideas and goals! But when you're told no, it's best just to let it go at a certain point.

You're always looking for a way out

You're watching the clock until you're able to leave at the end of the day. You shirk responsibility at every opportunity. You don't care enough to push yourself. You're simply not committed to your job.

You don't get along with anyone at the company

Yes, it's possible that everyone at your organization is terrible. But have you ever considered that you might be the problem?

You can't take no for an answer

It's great to be confident in your ideas and goals! But when you're told no, it's best just to let it go at a certain point.

You're always looking for a way out

You're watching the clock until you're able to leave at the end of the day. You shirk responsibility at every opportunity. You don't care enough to push yourself. You're simply not committed to your job.

You don't get along with anyone at the company

Yes, it's possible that everyone at your organization is terrible. But have you ever considered that you might be the problem?