My Number One Rule

Have you ever had a really boring day at work? One of those days when everything is going smoothly and you actually feel like you can get a few things done, relax and maybe even smile. You sit down, you are making wonderful progress and then all of the sudden you hear a commotion of some kind. It sounds like yelling, but you think to yourself that there is no way that is happening on my nice simple day at work. Then it happens, the office door flies open and its right in front of you. Someone is upset about something pretty small in the overall view of things, but they act as if the end of the world is happening. You stand up and go over to them to ask them what is wrong, but you can barely understand them. Four letter words and arms are flying all over the place and they want you to solve the issue to their liking, RIGHT NOW! You are so caught off guard, you have no idea where to start. So, what do you do? You know you need to calm them down, but how? The perfect way would be to solve their issue, but now that you have heard and understand the issue, it's crazy. So now you have to solve the issue, calm them down and do it while telling them that they are being crazy and irrational. This is when you have to have something, not usually found in a handbook. You have to go to your own personal playbook and follow your rules. So, what is the number one in my playbook? Always be respectful. Yes, it's that simple. But the only way that it works is to preach it early and often. How early? I would say during the interview. If they want to know why they should work here, you tell them it's a place where they can be respected and listened to. It's a place where you can feel safe. Day one of employment, go over everything that you are job obligated to go over, but don't forget to say we respect each other around here. On day two if they aren't listening to the person training them, you can explain that not listening is being disrespectful and we don't accept that around here. When they want to try a shortcut, you stop them and explain that shortcuts are disrespectful. Not cleaning up - Disrespectful. Those are simple easy examples introducing respect into the workplace. So, if the day ever comes when they come into your office yelling, you can stop them right away and explain that before we go any further, you will be respectful or you will go home. If you don't think you can send them home, you might be able to go the corrective action route. If you have two people that are arguing about something, it's amazing how fast you can calm the situation down by stopping everyone early in the conversation and explaining that from here on how we will speak respectfully to each other. Almost every time a situation is out of control, someone is being disrespectful. Two huge benefits come from this, first, you can disarm almost any situation quickly. That will give you time to regroup and figure out what is really going on. Second, you will earn a reputation for being a person who truly listens to other people. In his book "Ruthless Consistency" Michael Canic says this. "In traveling to almost 50 countries, I have found that regardless of country or culture, race or religion, nationality or ethnicity, there are three universals that are core to a person's work experience: respect, trust and caring". Respect is universal, everyone deserves it. I may not like you, but I will show respect to you. You are going to find yourself in a lot of situations where you are caught off guard or you don't know what to do, Always remember, the number one rule is respect!