Respect in the Workplace

One of the main reasons for workers to leave their job is the lack of respect they experience. When you treat someone with respect, it is to value their opinions, abilities and feelings. This does not mean that you have to like them or agree with them as a person.

Imagine a workplace without respect. Workers do not value one another. Employees view employees as disposable and easily replaceable commodities. Workers are not willing to voice their opinion because they know that they are not valued. There is no sense of security as the air of disrespect is everywhere. Workers are not treated as human beings. There is much stress and no one wants to address it. People are not willing to share their expertise as they do not want to receive the negative and often non-constructive criticism. Needless to say, many coworkers are isolating themselves and do not feel like they belong.

In a respectful workplace, workers are more open to speak up because there is the culture of valuing others’ opinions even though they are different. There is better communication and less guessing work. When there is enhanced communication, there is less error. Time is saved without having to fix the unnecessary mistakes caused by miscommunication.

There is better teamwork in a respectful work environment. The person who feels respected will be more open to constructive criticism. In turn, he will also provide constructive criticism to his coworkers. It is also easier to learn from one another, according to each person’s strengths.

With more teamwork, each member is focusing on the other person’s strength to enhance work performance and productivity. In a respectful work environment, workers feel supported. You feel that there is someone backing you up. There is an increased sense of belonging.

In a workplace where the culture promotes valuing a person’s strengths and abilities, the productivity is enhanced. More workers experience job satisfaction, which translates to decreased turnover. The decrease in turnover further increases productivity.

How to be respectful in the workplace?

The first step is to respect yourself. Do you value your own qualities and values? Do you treat yourself as someone you show high regard for? Do you acknowledge and care about your own feelings?

Oftentimes we forget to respect ourselves. You are worthy. You are amazing. Accept yourself the way you are right now. This does not mean you are complacent. You continue the journey of learning and growing every day.

When you respect yourself, you gain the full capacity to respect others, even when you do not like them. Even when you do not agree with them.

Respect in the workplace is about valuing other people. You value their expertise, their work ethic, their special talents or other unique characteristics. You do not have to like the person to respect the person. When there is a respectful culture at work, there is less stress. There is more job satisfaction. There is more communication and teamwork. People feel supported by their coworkers and their institution. This is a work environment that decreases job turnover and promotes gratitude.

Let us start my respecting ourselves then respecting our coworkers.