As children, we were all taught to be kind to one another. What our elders don’t teach us, however, is that kindness has its pitfalls.
Some people may take advantage of the goodwill you show them, as this employee experienced with their coworkers. All of this happened because the person chose to stand up for their moral and religious beliefs.
After enduring harsh bullying, the author had a satisfying ending to their story. Scroll through to find out what happened.
An employee got a raw deal after showing kindness to coworkers
Image credits: pvproductions/Freepik (not the actual photo)
It began after the person offered to pick up everyone’s lunches from a specific restaurant
Image credits: stockking/Freepik (not the actual photo)
Things got heated after one coworker and the vice president escalated the situation
Image credits: Mikhail Nilov/Pexels (not the actual photo)
Practicing reciprocity can actually create tension, especially with unclear communication
In theory, showing an act of kindness gets you in the good graces of everyone around you. But as we mentioned in our intro, it has its pitfalls, particularly in the concept of reciprocity.
As workplace and career expert Will Steward tells Bored Panda, “reciprocity creep” can create tension, especially when there is no clear communication.
“It turns a one‑off favor into an unwritten rule, and no one clarifies who actually owns the task,” he explained.
“Role ambiguity means the most agreeable person defaults into organizing, while power dynamics make juniors and underrepresented employees more likely to keep saying yes to seem cooperative.”
The employee eventually found themselves in a sticky situation when the “lunch club” grew in size and upper management became involved. Their boundaries were stepped over in the process.
Steward says a mindset shift from “I’m letting the team down” to “I’m protecting a proper break so I can do my job well and share chores fairly” is one way to uphold these boundaries without damaging workplace morale.
But of course, upholding harmony is a collective effort. Steward suggested practical approaches, such as shifting such favors from “nice-to-do” to “fair-to-share,” with a few defaults everyone can see.
“Make logistics opt‑in and time‑boxed, set a rotating organizer so no one does it more than about once a month, use a clear cut‑off time, and default to group payment links so nobody fronts money or chases tips,” he said.
The author provided more information in their story
Image credits: Lucky__number_Sleven
Some people sided with the employee
However, others called them out for “imposing their restrictions” on others
The author provided an update
Image credits: Anna Shvets/Pexels (not the actual photo)
After things got physical with a coworker at one point, the story ended satisfyingly for them
People didn’t hold back with their reactions after learning how things played out
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