Posted by You are likely to spend a good portion of your week interacting with coworkers. Here are some tips that can inform your behavior choices as you try to treat others respectfully.
1. Acknowledge each person’s basic dignity
According to the concept of human dignity, people should be genuinely valued regardless of their position or situation. If you observe other people who have a strong feeling of self-worth, it may influence your attitude to be positive from the start.
2. Have empathy for every person’s life situation
Acknowledging dignity is the first step in having empathy for others. Empathy is your capacity to understand another by being able to imagine yourself in their situation. It enables you to feel their joy or their sorrow and sincerely celebrate or offer help and support. Your coworkers may share many details of their personal lives, or they might prefer to keep them more private. However, even if you do not know the details of their homes, families and core values, you can still have empathy and treat them like you understand their difficulties and successes.
3. Listen to and encourage each other’s opinions and input
People are more likely to feel valued in professional scenarios such as brainstorming at the start of a project or mid-project evaluation sessions if the other team members listen to their thoughts and accept their values.
People in offices have a wide range of personalities, and some are less likely to express themselves in a large group situation. Others may dominate a conference with several ideas, and it is important to recognise that all methods have importance.
Related link: 8 TIPS HOW TO BE A GOOD EMPLOYEE
4. Validate other people’s contributions
Validation shows people their feelings are understandable. Much of what people contribute to their work is motivated by their professional experience and their opinions on how things ought to be done, developed over the course of their careers. Validation in person or in writing helps people feel that their philosophies and approaches are valuable and contribute to the success of the project.
5. Avoid gossip, teasing and other unprofessional behavior
To encourage cooperation and respect among coworkers, it is best to avoid gossip of any kind, even if it may seem harmless to you. As discussed earlier, acknowledging dignity and treating others with empathy means you avoid assigning motives to people’s lives. You show respect by not discussing others’ situations or behaviors outside acceptable channels like with a manager or human resources.
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Emulate the actions of someone you consider respectful
You are likely to have mentors or coworkers whose behaviour you appreciate during your career. As you recall those good examples, write down the times or actions in which you observed them demonstrating respect for others.
7. Obey the policies and procedures of your employer
A commitment to being an honest and ethical individual who strictly adheres to rules and policies demonstrates that you value the organisation as a whole. It demonstrates exemplary behaviour to anybody who works with you. You demonstrate respect by adhering to confidentiality agreements, working productively during paid hours, adhering to the dress code, only using company resources such as keys, vehicles, computers, and credit cards for work-related tasks, and strictly adhering to any safety and legal requirements in your industry.