Office Etiquette: Tips To Overcome Bad Manners At Work

[Fahmi Hasan]

Why is office etiquette important? Because bad manners at work can be bad for business by negatively affecting employee morale and productivity.
To ensure a happy and productive work environment, every employee (not just management) should act as a role model by demonstrating the following good manners:
•   Stay at home when you're sick.
•   Always show up on time for meetings. If you're usually running late, try scheduling meetings in 45 minute increments to allow enough time to get to your next one.
•   Keep meetings to the scheduled amount of time. Don't force the next group to stand in the hallway outside the conference room waiting for you and your group to finish.
•   Put your cell phone on vibrate mode to prevent disturbing others.
•   Pay attention during meetings and avoid multi-tasking, such as scrolling through emails on your smart phone or computer.
•   Don't hold meetings in your cubicle and distract those sitting close nearby. For meetings with three or more people, go to a conference room or a break area.
•   Eat lunch in the cafeteria or break room. Avoid eating smelly food at your desk.
•   Be aware of how loud you speak on the telephone if you work in a cubicle environment.
•   Avoid wearing perfume or cologne at work.
•   Ladies – don't wear revealing clothing. Let others see your skills, not private body parts.
•   Respect your co-worker's property (and company property).
•   Don't take things from others without asking. Refrigerator lunch food stealers – that also means you!
•   Don't yell and scream at others. Compassion and empathy will serve you much better to earn respect.
Tired of bad manners in your office? Here are tips for dealing with offenders:
•   Don't reciprocate bad office behavior.
•   Stay calm and don't get emotional or angry. We all have bad days every now and then; sometimes a sympathetic comment is the best way to direct a coworker toward better behavior.
•   Meet with the person in a private location and explain how his or her bad manners are affecting you.
•   Make sure you understand your company's business ethics and procedures for reporting infractions.
•   If the bad behavior continues or worsens after you've spoken with the offender, seek help from your manager or a representative from HR.

Lisa Quast
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2014/04/07/office-etiquette-tips-to-overcome-bad-manners-at-work/#62925b2d4a37