How You Use Respectful Civil Communication At Work

Practicing Civil Communication In The Workplace Begins With Respect

Civil communication and interaction between colleagues in the workplace bring invaluable benefits to an organization. Besides the wide range of business benefits and workplace culture enhancements, the overall satisfaction of employees in the workplace who practice respectful communication makes the investment worthwhile.

Employees express a better culture at work, more resilient and cohesive teams, consistent levels of productivity, increased collaboration, motivated colleagues who are happy to go above and beyond, and perhaps unsurprisingly, low turnover and absenteeism. With that level of optimism, everyone benefits.

So How Can We Contribute?

Here are some tips.

A good start is to show your colleagues they are appreciated and valued.

If you have faith in what they do, make sure they know about it. Do your part and contribute to an environment that nurtures personal insight, cooperative brainstorming, and creativity. The result – confident people are working together for a goal. When we are motivated and feel we contribute to a company’s bottom line and success, we believe we are an essential part of the team.

Embrace different perspectives

People will have different viewpoints and need to believe their opinion matters. Respecting and encouraging the individuality of every colleague creates a safe environment where individuals are comfortable being themselves. In doing so, you create a platform for individuals to share their ideas and insight freely.

An organization that encourages respect for diversity enjoys the many benefits of a cohesive workforce. We all play a role in helping people feel their ideas matter, and how you react to a colleague’s perspective today is likely to influence their reaction to yours in the future.

How Do You Like Your Boss To Treat You?

Most everyone has a boss.

It is all about communication: the civil interaction that happens between each of us. We still rely on the basic tenet of treating others the way you would like to be treated.

It’s simple really: Practice civility every day.

Civility is about people using their manners, being courteous, and polite. It is about people being generally aware of the rights, concerns, and feelings of others.

Do you go out of your way to extend courteous, gracious, and respectful behavior to the people you work with day in and day out? Do you make a practice of it?

When it Comes to Giving Feedback

We must practice civil communication and respect – even when we need to give constructive or even critical feedback.

Do you know what triggers you? Hopefully, you do. But do you know what triggers others? Chances are you do not. Often our ignorance lies at the basis of disrespectful communication.

Two-Fold Instruction

First, always aim to be carefully monitoring your speech and behavior when “reacting” to feedback. If you aren’t entirely sure, try to understand what triggers adverse or defensive reactions in yourself, so you have control over your weak moments.

Secondly, try to be careful during any interaction with others that you take the time to think it through before you speak. We are all susceptible to weak moments—particularly when we feel defensive and hurt during feedback. And don’t think moments of jest and levity alter that overall feeling!

You won’t have a second chance to “un-say” something you said.

Consider the potential impact of your message. Before you speak, before you take action, consider the triggers and responses of others. Too often, we send a communication in the form of emails or text messages without taking the time to consider the various ways someone could interpret your communication.

Taking a few seconds to consider the impact of your message can help to prevent an unintended situation and unnecessary hurt feelings.

Accept Responsibility When Things Go Wrong

It’s a given that we all need to accept responsibility for our actions and be aware of the consequences. But what does this mean?

You are only human, after all, and you can’t be 100% on your game all of the time. What is critical, however, is that we communicate our acknowledgment effectively that we messed up both to ourselves and others. In doing so, we improve, rectify, and prevent these same mistakes from recurring.