How do you professionally deal with a "catty" woman whom you have to work with?

Question

*Note, I am a non-catty, non-game-playing, non-office politics woman asking this question?

Answer 1

If she is bad-mouthing other people to you then just let her know that you're not interested in hearing all that stuff.  She's there to work not to gossip.

Answer 2

give them a saucer of cream and a shaker of salt

Answer 3

Give her some catnip and a ball of yarn. Seriously.

Answer 4

A catty negative woman can bring down staff morale and create a negative energy in the workplace making it a very unpleasant to work in.   The worst offenders are the so called "queen bees".  They become self appointed leaders of the informal power group.  The "official" power group is the office management.  But the unofficially self proclaimed power group can make life miserable for everyone else.  They are not team players and they want others to toe the line (office politics?)

Avoid socializing with this person and keep everything professionally superficial if you know what I mean.   If she tries to suck you into a back stabbing session about another staff member excuse yourself immediately and say you need to get back to your work.

Always be cheerful around this person and her "friends" but always keep your guard up and don't allow yourself to be baited into playing her game.  The key is to always be respectful, cheerful and friendly when on the job with her.   But you certainly don't need to socialize with her on your own time.

If she makes disparaging remarks about someone else on staff call her on it.  Do this by telling her how much you appreciate what that other person does or that she's never been a problem to you.  

If things get too intense then you need to bring management into it.  Ask management to bring the matter up at the next staff meeting.  Management doesn't have to mention your name or the catty person's name.  Management just has to reinforce that there is no place for this sort of thing and that a positive atmosphere is an expectation not a choice.

Answer 5

If I were you I would tell her to f*ck off.