“Respect your efforts, respect yourself. Self-respect leads to self-discipline. When you have both firmly under your belt, that’s real power.” Clint Eastwood. Seemingly this formula worked well for Clint Eastwood in his career and if you want to be better respected at your job, it can work for you too.
Take a moment to conjure up what work would be like if your colleagues, bosses, subordinates and clients treated you more respectfully. Do you envision more money? Do you envision more fulfilling relationships with these individuals?
1. Define Your Values – People follow strength and competency. Think about what makes you a better, stronger person. Write down those aspects you would like to move towards and a few things you would like to move away from. Simply listing these items can provide tremendous momentum toward or away from each value.
2. Discover Your Passion – It helps a great deal to get where you want to be if the you have passion for the actual journey it takes to reach your end goal. Passionate employees tend to deepen their involvement around the office and, thus gain a significant amount of respect and friendship from others.
3. Know Your Purpose – Corporate America is a tough place. It will lead you through twists, turns and disappointments. If your purpose is, say, to service your clients better than any other firm, then keep your eye on the ball. The resiliency and positive attitude will quickly be realized by those around you.
4. Envision What the Future is Going to Be Like – Start to take some time and envision what it is going to be like when you do hit the pinnacle of getting more respect, friendship and success around the office. Practice makes perfect. To best achieve this, take a few deep breaths, get the negative thoughts out of your mind and begin to make it a mental reality.
5. Stop Monologuing and Start Taking Interest – You ever notice that when you look at a picture with multiple people in it, you always look at yourself first? Human beings (inside the office, outside the office – wherever) are highly self-involved. They are flattered and respond better to you as a leader and an individual when you stop focusing on yourself and begin to take a genuine interest in them.
“One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.” Bryant H. McGill
In the end
Taking these steps isn’t easy, but think of it as training yourself for a better life. There is a pertinent story I read a few weeks ago about a Navy Seal who, when he jumped out of an airplane, found that his parachute wouldn’t open.
He described what saved him and eventually got it opened was his extensive training, which allowed him to remain focused. It won’t happen tomorrow or a week from now and maybe not even in a month, but with extensive training on yourself and your interaction with others, you will become better respected both professionally and personally.
