Do you respect all of your coworkers? Do they feel that you respect them? I know these may seem like ridiculous questions, but for many the answer to them is, no.
Often when working with difficult people we tend to give them a cold shoulder, only half of our attention or none at all.
A colleague of mine once gave me some excellent advice about coworkers; she said, “You do not have to be their best friend, you just need to be able to work with them.”
We tend to think if we do not care for a coworker that we cannot interact with them, and that should not be so. We need to treat everyone we work with respectfully, whether we like them or do not.
Below are a few things that you can do to show respect to those you work with no matter how you feel about them.
Be patient and kind in your interactions with all coworkers.
Look for the positive in what your coworkers do at work.
Talk well about your colleagues. (You can do this because you have looked for the good that they do at work)
Be willing to help them if they need it.
Communicate openly about work in a friendly manner.
Be willing to teach and share knowledge.
Say “Good morning” and smile at them each day.
I know that this might seem hard if you are working with a “not nice or difficult” coworker. However, try to remember even though they may not change or even appreciate your efforts at treating them with respect, you are doing the right thing and you will feel great about that.
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