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Description: When individuals engage in job crafting by decreasing their job demands, the workload among their team members rises. Acting in favor of self-interest at the expense of others requires holding a belief about the antagonistic nature of human relations. The present research extends knowledge on the antecedents of reducing job demands by demonstrating how a Belief in Life as a Zero-Sum Game (BZSG) shapes workplace behaviors. In two studies we find general support for our predictions that a strong BZSG impairs proactivity and increases tendency to minimize one’s job demands at the expense of others. We also demonstrate that excessive workload triggers reduction of job demands indirectly via activating BZSG. Simultaneously, there is a direct and negative link between workload and decreasing of job demands. Results from the present research are important for theory and practice alike because they delineate which conditions prompt avoidance of job demands among individuals.