Effective work relationships are paramount for success and satisfaction with your career. No matter what your title, education or experience, if you cannot play well with others, you will not accomplish your personal or professional goals. It can also impact promotion, pay increases, goal accomplishments and job satisfaction.
Here are some suggestions for actions you can take to create a positive work environment for you and others:
Find the Solutions – Employees spend an inordinate amount of time on problems in the workplace, but few step up with solutions. Thoughtful solutions will earn respect and admiration from co-workers and management.
Do Not Play the Blame Game – The quickest way to alienate your co-workers and staff is to blame others. Saying “it is not my fault” or publicly blaming others for failures will not help your cause and could eventually help you to fail.
Communication Matters – Everyone will pick up on someone who talks down, uses sarcasm or is just plain rude. Respect for each other should be a hallmark of any organization.
Do Not Blind Side – If any employee hears about a problem for the first time in a meeting or from an email, that person was blind sided. Always discuss problems in person first with the employee directly involved. You will never build effective work alliances unless your co-workers and managers trust you.
Keep Your Commitments – If you fail to meet your commitments or deadlines, you affect the work of everyone. If you know you cannot make a deadline, let everyone know what happened. Provide a new deadline date and make every effort to honor that.
Share Credit Received – Not many people in an organization accomplish a goal all by themselves. Many managers make a significant contribution based upon ideas suggested by staff members. Be sure to compliment, recognize, praise and notice any contribution. Help fellow employees harness their best abilities, which will benefit the organization immeasurably.
Carrying out these actions will insure you play well with others and develop positive working relationships. You will accomplish your work goals and even experience fun, recognition and personal motivation. Can it get any better than that?