This year in our leadership training, we talked about respect. We posed the question: when someone meets our company, what will be our standard for showing respect?
Several themes arose:
We don’t ignore strangers, we engage them. We acknowledge their presence. We learn their mission. We do it all with courtesy.
We learn names.
When it comes to meeting new colleagues, we aren’t quick to judge. There were numerous stories about how initial assessments don’t match up with the total package. It was a common suggestion that respect demands that we endeavor to learn the “book beneath the cover.”
Learning means that we ask questions and listen to answers. There were plenty of anecdotes about learning about unapparent skills and abilities by patiently cultivating relationships.
Respect leads to “knowing” our teammates. Endeavoring to know our teammates better almost always results in discovering potential.
Old school was that new people show us their ability and earn our respect. New school says respecting on principle opens the doors to potential. We believe in embracing respect.
