Work place etiquette; worth sticking to


It's not the work, but often our own inefficiency and exhausting dynamics of the so-called “office-politics” that boost up our stress levels.

Well, 6 years of work experience certainly doesn’t give me any credentials to compile a comprehensive list of do’s and don’ts about workplace etiquette. But little mistakes made by myself and others, has often made me swear to myself to never repeat those when I get into that situation again. Hope you benefit from this little list too:

· Never criticize a sub-ordinate in front of others (esp. in front of those at a similar and lower rank to him)

· Never talk office-politics with your colleagues or backstab those not present. It may be fun, relieve your stress for the moment or be in tune with the popular opinions. The problem may even be genuine. But in the long run, people working under/with you will eventually lose their respect for you. On a more practical note, discussing work-politics simply can be dangerous because you never know who is on whose side.

· If at all, you want to discuss work related problems with a colleague, discuss them only with people who can bring positive changes to the situation, not those who’ll spread the gloom around.

· It is best to pour out your stress and frustration to those, not related to your work at all. For eg – your spouse or a close friend. They will definitely not manipulate your problems for their benefit and coming from a neutral position, they offer the best advice too.

· There is always dignity in labour. When the need arises, it doesn’t hurt to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. A manager on giving a helping hand to his sub-ordinates to get a work done is more likely to boost the morale of lower-level employees than the one who is standing nearby and shouts orders while smoking a cigarette. But make sure that they don’t take your last-minute help for granted.

· When there is a crisis situation caused by the inefficiency of a sub-ordinate, focus first on getting out of the fix instead of being upset and wasting precious time on rebuking the employee. After the storm has passed, call the guy to the privacy of your cabin and make him understand the consequences of his mistake. He will understand it better now.

· Make sure that your basics remain strong. Too much of delegation can make you out of touch with the basic skills required for your job. It can be disastrous for an Executive Chef of a hotel when his butcher doesn’t turn up the morning before an important lunch buffet, the entire kitchen crew is already occupied and he himself has never learnt to slice a piece of beef successfully in his career.

· Try to equip yourself with a few basic technical skills, esp. those related to your PC, no matter what your job-profile is. Quite a few managers miss their project deadlines because they did not know how to fix a simple printer problem when their system administrator had taken the day off.

· It is not merely good, but also smarter to be nice and always polite to everyone around you. You may not give a second thought to your rudeness or indifference to your sub-ordinates. But you never know how the tables turn. The assistant who was at the receiving end of your rude remarks a few years ago, may come back as your boss and will be sure to carry out his grudge in some way. Whereas, even the most insignificant of your subordinates may remember your kind words to him and will return the favors at the most needy moment in a totally unexpected manner.

· Be a leader in everyway you can. No position is too insignificant or no job is too little which does not merit your leadership. The leaders need not necessarily be always the top guys. Each of us have the capacity to exert positive influence over others, even within the team - be it taking the initiative in a new project, organizing a team outing or get together or being the first to report a controversial issue to the boss.

· Share knowledge. I don’t know why, but for some mysterious reason, some people at a work-place hold on to their knowledge and skill sets possessively, refusing to share it with their team members. Bacon’s maxim of “Knowledge is power” does apply, but only in situations when giving away confidential information can be disastrous for the individual or company’s growth. But otherwise, doesn’t it make more sense to share your knowledge, delegate your current responsibilities to the eager subordinates and keep moving towards higher career goals and newer knowledge areas? That is the only way to keep growing and not by clinging on to what you have already achieved or already know.

· Never manipulate people for your own interests. Nothing can put this more effectively than a little quote that I read a few days back – “Nowadays we tend to love things and use people when it is supposed to be vice-versa”. Manipulating people and your relationships with them may bring short-term results, but you tend to lose your credibility as a person, among your colleagues and business partners, in the long run.

Of course, it is not always easy to do things and build relationships the “right way”, especially when it comes to the competitive environment of work or business. It takes a HELL of an effort. Most of the time, we are tempted to do/say things on impulse or in the manner, which appears easy. How many times have you had to bite your lips when you were about to say something nasty to a colleague? But when you think for a moment that the words you utter will only take that relationship beyond repair, its well worth the effort to withhold your anger.

Let’s remember that there are simply no short cuts to success or building good relationships. After all, we spend the best part of our day and life at work. The people, who grow to like and admire you genuinely here, will remain one of your best assets for life.