Tuning out Disrespect
26 Jan
Posted by: Erica in: Corporate Culture, Equality, Human Rights, Respect, Workplace Bullying, Workplace Conflict, Workplace Discrimination, Workplace Harassment
One of the things I discuss in my book Road to Respect is how bad behavior is often tolerated within workplaces. Excuses are made. “Oh that is just (whomever). That is just how she/he is”. When nothing is done to deal with workplace disrespect, everyone soon accepts it as “just the way it is around here.”
As a result, bad behavior, disrespect becomes the norm. We hardly even notice it. It is like Muzak on an elevator. We tune it out.
This is a real problem. If we are tolerating disrespect, if we are tuning it out, then we are in fact contributing to it. We are supporting and condoning it.
Now, I understand how hard it is to stand up, to speak up to someone that is disrespectful, particularly when that person has power. But just because something is hard does not give us an excuse to avoid it. Courage is not the absence of fear. It is the willingness to take action even though you are afraid.
Ideally, none of us should have to put up with bad behavior at work. Reality is, however, that disrespect is becoming a fact of working life for increasing numbers of us. The flip side is that we all have a choice as to how we react to it.
Sure we can tune it out. We can make excuses. We can tolerate it.
Or we can make a different choice – an empowering choice that flows from a foundation of self-respect. We can take action. We can say something. We can choose to give others respectful feedback on their bad behavior. We can stand with those that are targeted. We can speak up about our right to work in a respectful and safe environment.
No one benefits when we choose to tolerate disrespect at work. It is time to stop tuning out. I think it is time to start speaking out.
What do you think?
Search
Calendar
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Aug | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | |||
Blogroll
Erica’s Book
Visit Me
Recent Tweets
- End Violence Against Women: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/134/782/878/
- Tell Iran to Release Three American Hikers: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/629/063/535/
- RT @change: Group Buying for Good http://chn.ge/aoAi3C
- RT @change: New U.K. Study: One in Ten Women in Prostitution Are Slaves http://chn.ge/dpZtfw
- Amnesty International: Release Aung San Suu Kyi online petition. Take action now! http://twurl.nl/sdyqfi
Recent comments
- Facing up to the Reality of Gender Inequality by Erica Pinsky's Blog : CompBlogs.com on Facing up to the Reality of Gender Inequality
- Ericajpinskyinc on Ayaan Hirsli Ali – A Woman with the Courage to Speak Up
- Chris on The Harm in the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST)
- Erica on The Harm in the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST)
- Candice on The Harm in the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST)
Archives
- August 2010 (1)
- July 2010 (2)
- June 2010 (1)
- May 2010 (3)
- April 2010 (4)
- February 2010 (1)
- January 2010 (3)
- December 2009 (3)
- October 2009 (1)
- August 2009 (2)
- July 2009 (4)
- June 2009 (4)
- May 2009 (4)
- April 2009 (2)
- March 2009 (3)
- February 2009 (2)
2 Responses
Kristen
26|Jan|2010 1Erica – while I agree with everything you say in this post, there is an aspect that relates to this subject that you don’t address. That is how the management and/or HR departments approach the reporting of disrespectful behaviour by employees.
While I completely support that we should all be able to call out bad behaviour in colleagues regardless who they are or what position they hold, the fact is, there are frequently negative repurcussions resulting to the reporter in far more cases than any consequences for the person exhibiting the disrespect.
If the environment one works in is such that disrespect is tolerated [at best] or actively protected [at worst] I don’t think it is a reasonable expectation for someone who presumably needs the income their job provides, to risk that to fight a battle like this one on their own.
I believe that it is incumbent upon the senior managements of companies to create an environment where respectful behaviour is not only expected, but is modelled by the senior people. My years in a variety of mid-sized and large corporate envrionments has suggested that this type of change must come from the senior levels and move downwards to be truly successful and embraced across the organization. Individual “rank-and-file” employees can’t change a structure that tolerates disrespect by calling out bad behaviour one incident at a time.
Erica
12|Apr|2010 2Hi Kristen, sorry, I somehow missed this comment entirely – my apologies.
I completely agree with your perspective. It is something I discuss at length in my book Road to Respect. I have a presentation I call Speak Up Speak Out: Personal Power and Respect in the Workplace, and while the intention is to empower ees to speak up, I always stress the requirement to assess when to do that. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, much appreciated.
Leave a reply