Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette!
In today's video, we'll be discussing office etiquette and why it's important to maintain
it, some key etiquette danger zones, and how to mitigate conflict in the workplace.
The office, fortunately, or not, it is where most of us spend the majority of our waking
hours, that's why it's important that you always maintain good workplace etiquette because
how you deal with your co-workers and your office environment can often make the key
difference between happy and unhappy employment.
So let's get to the big question in today's video then, why is it that office etiquette
is so important?
The basic answer is that with good office etiquette everyone can be comfortable and
effective in the workplace.
Of course, 100% comfort and efficiency is an impossible ideal but we can say that 90
percent is a good margin to shoot for and by using good etiquette techniques and behaviors,
we think you can achieve 90% or perhaps even above, as far as etiquette is concerned.
As an example here, nobody has the right to absolute silence in the office at all times
but if everybody is mindful of their noise level and courteous to others around them,
the office will be relatively quiet and everyone should be able to work in relative peace.
What makes for good office etiquette then?
Simply put, having good office etiquette means that you are respectful and considerate both
of your co-workers and of the overall office environment around you.
Keep in mind that truly good office etiquette goes above and beyond the kinds of things
that you might just find in a typical employee handbook, therefore, good office etiquette
can help you navigate those sticky interpersonal situations that lie in the area between where
the handbook rules end and where basic good manners begin.
Before we move on, here is one important note, today's video is running under the assumption
that your workplace is already a safe environment.
If you encounter or are the subject of harassment, physical abuse, or any kind of safety consideration,
know that these subjects should be taken very seriously and that you should seek to solve
them via such channels as Human Resources or if necessary, by legal counsel.
With that said, here are a few situations where we think you should be especially mindful
of having good workplace etiquette.
We're going to refer to them as our etiquette danger zones.
There are three big danger zones to consider here; those dealing with noise, interpersonal
interactions, and common use spaces.
So first, let's start with noise.
The simplest thing to cover here is having good etiquette when it comes to talking.
Usually, talking too loudly or too much are the problems here.
If you're unsure whether or not you're doing these things in the office, it can usually
be as simple as asking one of your co-workers.
A related subject here is the question of phone calls, again, talking too loudly can
be an issue as well as discussing things over the phone that are really too personal in
nature and not appropriate for a workplace environment.
And of course, regarding speakerphone, just don't do it often.
The office is too public a place to have the other end of the line also audible to everyone
else around you.
Think about it this way, if you're talking for 20 minutes about the vacation you just
took and you're doing it so loudly that everyone on your floor can hear you, not only are you
wasting your own time but you're also probably causing several of your co-workers to be unproductive
too.
Of course, all of the considerations that we've outlined above are affected somewhat
by the type of space you're in, that is to say, whether you have your own office, whether
you're working in a cubicle, or if you're in a common space around the workplace.
If you do have your own office, you've got greater leeway when it comes to your personal
volume.
Just remember to close the door, if you don't do this, you'll probably garner resentment
from your co-workers especially the ones in cubicles because they don't have the luxury
of closing the door so therefore, they can't ever be in a situation where they're talking
as loudly as you might be.
On that note, if you happen to work out of a cubicle without a door, keep your volume
at a reasonable level and keep your conversations to subjects that aren't too personal.
If you're in a common space, don't take lengthy phone calls in spaces like the cafeteria.
You can answer a call in these spaces to be sure but if you sense that the call is going
to go on for a while, move at your earliest convenience to a more private location where
you can continue the call unencumbered.
Our next danger zone deals with the question of interpersonal interaction, starting as
you might imagine, with the question of physical touch.
The short answer here is just don't do it.
Today's office climate, just like society as a whole, is currently undergoing a bit
of a shift in how we view the nature of physical touch between people like co-workers or general
acquaintances.
Overall, it's always best to be reserved and considerate.
One note in particular here, just declaring to others around the office that you consider
yourself a "hugger" isn't going to cut it.
Trust us when we say that everybody thinks that kind
of behavior is creepy and inappropriate in general.
Even if you have an acknowledged workplace relationship, keep your physical interaction
to a minimum.
Nobody wants or needs to be subjected to that kind of behavior in the public environment
of the workplace.
Next, let's discuss the issue of being passive-aggressive.
The Gentleman's Gazette is headquartered in Minnesota which you may have heard is something
of a famously passive-aggressive place at times but even if it is part of the local
social culture, that's still not an excuse to be passive-aggressive within the office
environment.
This tactic which includes such behaviors as saying something slightly petty to make
others feel guilty or more generally, acting in an underhanded way to try and punish someone,
will not only affect others in the short term but will also affect you in the long term.
Needless to say, all of these effects will be negative.
Don't resort to passive-aggressive behaviors like eye rolling, the silent treatment, stalling
tactics, or sarcasm.
The only thing that these kinds of behaviors are going to do is hurt your co-workers and
damage your reputation in the long run.
Instead, your goal here should simply be to be the bigger person and choose open and honest
communication with those around you.
It will work out better.
Also, it can sometimes be difficult to call out passive-aggressive behavior in others
especially because the kind of people who use such behaviors are usually trying to avoid
conflict.
We'll talk more about how to solve these sorts of situations later on in the video but for
now, as it comes to the general topic of passive-aggressive behavior, just don't do it!
Another negative type of interpersonal behavior in the office is gossiping.
Gossip can sometimes be seen as a form of currency in offices because people do like
to be let in on secrets and they can feel special or privileged if they feel they know
something that others don't but this kind of behavior just leads to social stratification
and will ultimately lead to infighting among co-workers.
So it's best to avoid gossip, of course, there's nothing wrong with having conversations about
the latest news of the world or something like your company's latest quarterly profit
margin as long as you're discussing these topics in a measured way that isn't designed
to hurt or place blame on somebody else.
This ties into some of the earlier topics we've discussed.
If you do happen to learn something sensitive, say for example, about a death in the family
of one of your co-workers, either keep it to yourself or ask the person in question
if they would be comfortable with having that information shared among your co-workers.
It's always best to be cautious in these situations.
Overall, avoid participation in gossip especially if you're the one spreading it because it
will come back to bite you.
Again, it's just as simple as being the bigger person and choosing open and honest communication.
Here's a topic related somewhat to gossip, oversharing about yourself, your suspicious
back mole, your sex life, or you're overbearing mother-in-law are definitely not topics that
are suitable for discussion at the office.
The workplace is necessarily designed to be a professional environment so you should keep
your conversations professional.
If you do have co-workers whom you consider friends and do things with them outside of
work, those sorts of out of the office situations are where you can feel free to have more sensitive
conversations but not while you're in the office and on the clock.
This next interpersonal area is one that becomes more important with every passing day in our
increasingly fast-paced business society, timeliness.
In short, just show up on time.
If you're a person who's chronically late, you'll develop a reputation as someone who
doesn't take their job responsibilities seriously.
Also, it's important to remember that punctuality is about respecting other people's time, as
well as your own.
Other people have things they need to do and places they need to be so if everyone's on
time, things will go more smoothly.
In addition to not arriving late, don't let meetings or other types of gatherings go on
past their allotted time if you can help it.
Of course, sometimes meetings will run a little late but for the most part, it's important
that everyone try to be efficient because that way, everyone will ultimately be more
productive.
Also on the topic of respecting your co-workers time is interrupting often.
These sorts of things begin with the famous phrase "Hey, do you have a minute?" and then
proceeded to go on for another 45 minutes.
Interruptions are disruptive to everyone including the interrupter so it's important to keep
them to a necessary minimum.
A final area here about efficiency, don't waste your own time by loitering or hovering
in certain areas of the office.
For example, if you need something from a co-worker but you find that they're on the
phone when you get to them, don't stand around behind them waiting for them to finish their
call, just come back a little bit later.
Similarly, if you need to talk to somebody but you find that they're already engaged
in conversation with someone else, don't stand around eavesdropping.
Just go work on something else for a time and come back.
Next, let's talk about office events.
In short, you should always try to attend them when you're able.
Of course, missing out every once in a while is certainly fine but you don't want to develop
a reputation as somebody who's always too important or too busy to participate in office
events.
Overall, you want to be seen as a team player within your office.
To be clear, most of the situation's we're talking about here applies to events that
take place within the workplace.
You have a little bit more leeway with out of the office events like happy hour because
they're usually not required but you should still make an effort to attend these sorts
of things when you can, be social, be a team player.
Here's a quick note on the quintessential form of office communication, email.
In general, put some effort into your emails.
This means trying for proper spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc.
Again, this goes back to the topic of professionalism.
Even if you've got all of your spelling and grammar down, remember too that you shouldn't
be using an email as a chance to write the next Great American Novel.
Keep things brief, be concise, and use only the information that's absolutely necessary.
That way, everyone will get the message but they can continue working efficiently.
Our final section of interpersonal advice here has to do with illness.
In short, are you sick?
If so, you shouldn't be in the office.
A tiny sniffle or two can be alright, of course, but if you are sick enough that it's constantly
on your mind, chances are you're probably contagious and besides, you're going to be
less productive anyway.
If your company offers sick time or the option to work from home, take advantage of it, it's
going to be the best course of action for everybody Involved.
Now on to our last big etiquette danger zone, common use spaces.
The biggest issue with this type of danger zone is usually the question of overall cleanliness.
Let's start here by talking about the office kitchen or break room.
In short, keep things clean.
If you make a mess, clean it up, it's that simple.
Yes, cleaning up the messes you make is, in fact, your job, not the custodians, or your
assistants.
If you're a mature enough person to be a member of the workforce to begin with, you should
be a mature enough person to clean up your own messes.
Next, be mindful of community resources.
For example, don't take the last cup of coffee without making another pot afterward.
It's important that you remember to pay it forward.
The question of food can often be a little bit more tricky in this regard but if food
is communal, just take a reasonable portion and don't make a mess.
Those two factors combined should be enough to tow the etiquette line most often.
We've all seen the plate of food in the office break room with one little scrap left on it
because nobody wanted to be the person to take the last little piece but think about
it this way, the food was brought into the office to be eaten so as long as you haven't
over gorged yourself on too much food already, you shouldn't feel guilty about taking the
last piece if you happen upon the food when that's all that's left.
Finally, a note on one more communal space, the parking lot.
In short, don't take up more than one parking space because everyone is going to think you're
a jerk if you do and honestly, it's just not respectful behavior.
Park efficiently and keep your vehicle inside one space.
Alright, now that we've covered all of our etiquette danger zones, let's get down to
the question of how to deal with conflict in the workplace when it comes to etiquette
offenders.
Of course, you're not perfect and neither is anyone else and it's unreasonable to expect
perfection from anyone including yourself, however, if there is someone in your workplace
who's consistently breaking the rules of good office etiquette, it can lead to a demoralized
and unproductive workplace and it should be dealt with.
So the simplest way to proceed then in these kinds of situations is calmly and rationally,
personally and in private if you can help it, and directly.
To make this kind of interaction simple, use the following template.
Make sure to use the person's name and simply state the offending behavior that's going
on and the outcome that has resulted from this behavior.
Then respectfully ask the person in question if they can do something to change the behavior
in question.
Here's an example, "Hey Bill!
We've noticed recently that you've been taking a lot of your calls on speakerphone and we
find that it's been a little disruptive to people around you.
If it's okay, do you think you could maybe take your calls in a private space or just
turn the speakerphone off in the future?".
In the moment, of course, there are two broad categories of possible reactions.
The first is easier, apologetic.
That's when the person in question apologizes for the behavior and says that they'll commit
to doing better in the future.
If this happens, of course, that's the easiest road for all parties and you hopefully won't
have to worry about things continuing.
The other category of reaction then is the defensive reaction.
This is where the person in question rejects the notion that they have a problem.
If this happens and the conflict isn't getting resolved, it might be a good time to enlist
a manager's help better yet if you yourself are the manager and you see this type of reaction
occurring between coworkers use your power to defuse the situation so things can be resolved
calmly.
In conclusion, if you follow all of the advice we've put forward here today, you should hopefully
be seen by your co-workers and your superiors as someone who's cooperative and a valued
member of the company.
So, what do you think of our list?
Were there any etiquette tips for the workplace that you think we forgot to mention?
If so, let us know in the comments section below.
Also, be sure to check out our video playlist on different etiquette situations here and
as always, a final note, to subscribe to the channel so videos like these can come straight
to your inbox.
In today's video I'm wearing what could probably be considered a typical business
casual outfit on that note if you'd like to see some other suggestions for business casual
outfit ideas you can check out our previous video here my shirt is lilac in color and
it features a small houndstooth pattern which we could call puppy tooth it has French cuffs
but I've got them configured in a barrel cuff style today to accommodate the sleeves of
my sweater speaking of the sweater it's a cardigan style and a nylon wool blend and
it's in sort of a muted grey brown color my tie is a blend of wool cotton and cashmere
in a dark plum color and it also features a faint houndstooth or puppy tooth pattern
even though it's at roughly the same scale as the pattern on my shirt the pattern on
the tie is muted enough that it almost appears as a solid from a distance and the plum color
picks up some of the brown tones of the sweater that's why I
decided to wear all three pieces together my cufflinks are plain silver in color and
they feature a relatively simple design I don't remember the exact materials of construction
but as you can see I'm not really wearing them to be seen today anyway as to how I've
constructed my cuffs and how I'm wearing the sweater my pants and socks are both simple
black in color and my shoes which you've seen a few times before by now are black cap toed
derbys