October 1, 2009 12:31 AM
Rules I have found helpful in the workplace...
- Everyone else is working at least as hard as you are. Keep this in mind when you’re talking to them and ESPECIALLY when you’re asking them for anything. Commiserate with their workload. Apologize for bothering them. Ask them to tell you who you should be asking about it if it isn’t them. Be very appreciative of anything and everything they do for you.
- Put more good energy into the universe. Whenever you can say anything good about a coworker, do it. ESPECIALLY to their boss! Make a point of praising people to their boss. The boss will think you’re a good team player, your coworkers will remember you did it, and people will return the favor.
- Everyone is your buddy. Try hard to remember your coworkers’ kids’ names, what kind of pet they have, the last repair they had done on their car, anything that will show them that you listen to them and that you care. Drop casual references to these things into your small talk with them.
- People like to talk about themselves. Use this to open conversations with people you don’t know very well, especially when you need something from them. When they politely ask you about YOURself, tell them a little and then turn the conversation back to them.
- Always treat assistants and secretaries with the greatest respect and appreciation. They hold the keys to their boss’s door, literally and figuratively. You want them on your side.
- Don’t be afraid of the boss (but do be respectful and, if she appreciates it, deferential). She will respect you back, and you will learn how to become a boss yourself.
- Be absolutely certain you know who you’re talking to (and who that person is friends with, and who can overhear you) before you say ANYTHING controversial or critical. Stay away from sentences like “Anyone who [likes broccoli, votes Democratic, wears Prada, prefers cats, you get the idea] is crazy,” because sure as hell you’ll find out that the person you’re talking to is a yellow-dog Democrat who feeds broccoli to his Prada-wearing cats. Or if he isn’t, his mama is. Don’t lip off!
Related Tags: advice, schmoozing, politics, career, realpolitik, wisdom, work
