David J Paul Project Management Professional, Management Professor, Author and Small Business Manager
Your life is going to be so much better when you begin to commit to Caring for others first and then focus on the mission. One person commented that she liked our meetings better when we looked at each other instead of looking at our devices. That speaks to Respect and Regard, but before we get there, let’s just mention one other benefit you will experience at work when Caring is a priority: Integrity
Although Virtuousness and Compassion and Trust all have a reported relationship to productivity, Integrity consistently demonstrates a statistically significant relationship with profitability. Integrity happens as a result of Caring in the workplace. This indicates that organizations that are perceived to be trustworthy, reliable, and dependable are more profitable than other organizations. Despite the fact that forgiveness, optimism, compassion, and trust are not significantly associated with profitability in studies to date, (Cameron, 1997), innovation is associated with optimism, trust, integrity, and forgiveness. Quality is associated with optimism, trust, and integrity. Customer retention is associated with optimism and trust, and marginally with integrity and forgiveness. Low turnover is associated with trust and compassion. Virtuousness provides an amplifying effect. Employees are positively influenced by the demonstration of virtuousness in the organization. Members of an organization experience a compelling urge to build upon the contributions of others and to perpetuate the virtuous spiral. “The world is hungry for goodness and it recognizes it when it sees it—and has incredible responses to the good. There is something in all of us that hungers after the good and true, and when we glimpse it in people, we applaud them for it. We long to be just like them. Their inspiration reminds us of the tenderness for life that we all can feel” (Cameron, 1997, p. 9)
Respect in Action
Respect, like Empathy, is best experienced in real life situations. People come to their own ‘aha’ moments at different times and in different places. In an article titled, “Learning Respect in the Arizona Desert,” Tom Terez (2002) writes about his personal story of running out of gas in the middle of the Arizona Desert and getting help from some motorcyclists. Tom had a prejudice about motorcyclists but after he got their help he had more respect for them. Using that event Terez gives advice to readers on what they can do to respect and regard other people at work. You should do this at work
One is to start talking with people that you’ve disregarded and engage them in a conversation.
Second, is to organize a conversation about the topic of respect. What this does is get people talking about respect and hopefully following their own suggestions on how to respect other people or other employees.
Third, Terez suggests that instead of blaming someone who is at fault, try to find out if they are guilty or not.
Fourth, he suggests that managers or employees should look for opportunities to address respect in any formal or informal conversations regarding vision, company’s mission statement, values, goals, or other working principles.
The last advice Terez gives is, “Don’t be disrespectful”. He wants people to speak up for one another and stand by their employees.
More importantly, he also correlates the derivations of the words ‘respect’ and ‘regard’. The words ‘respect’ and ‘regard’ (as in ‘how I regard you’) are both derived from Latin and French words that capture various nuances of the verb ‘to look’. How appropriate. When I look at you, or when you look at me, what kind of quick judgments are made? Sure, respect (or the lack thereof) ultimately manifests itself as an action; it comes across in what we say or do or not do. But it originates between our ears. And it is in that very personal space that we have our biggest opportunity to increase the level of respect in our workplace (Terez, 2002).
Are you beginning to get it that your responsibility as a manager, leader, employee, parent, coach, or teammate is to create an atmosphere of high mutual regard among the people you work and play with?
You can do this–at work and at home. Good luck.
The Cameron Group, Inc. 