Mind Your Professional Manners

Etiquette may seem like a concept of yesteryear, but rest assured it still exists in offices nationwide, including yours. There are things you do (show up on time, finish your work, behave diplomatically) and there are things you don’t (gossip, make personal phone calls, send hateful emails about your boss). If you want to move up in the professional world, you have to polish your professional etiquette.

Some of the biggest culprits against workplace manners including gossiping, spending too much time on social networking sites, texting during meetings, engaging in long and involved personal phone calls, dressing inappropriately and/or otherwise disrupting your co-workers. In the modern age there’s a whole new set of standards involving technology and workplace behavior.

Are you polite and professional or do you need a crash course in etiquette? If you do, you may find that your climb up the social ladder isn’t going as well as you’d hoped. To brush up on your manners, follow these top ten tips:

1. Don’t gossip.

2. Listen to what your co-workers or boss are saying, rather than waiting to speak your mind.

3. Play well with others. Don’t bad-mouth colleagues, blame others for missed assignments, or play into “cliques.”

4. Be a leader, but not a tyrant.

5. While in meetings: Don’t daydream or play on your phone. Pay attention. If you don’t, it could come back to bite you.

6. Don’t engage in personal social networking on work time. It can easily suck you – and your time – in.

7. If you choose to have an active online presence during work hours, beware of what you post.

8. Don’t take or make personal phone calls while at work.

9. Be cordial of how your habits could affect your co-workers. Be tidy, polite and respectful.

10. If you find yourself in a potentially volatile situation, document everything.