Commandments are those
revered principles that guide us on to the right path, nudge us back into
action and advise us on the universally respected do’s and don’ts. Every time we hit a roadblock – the external
ravages on our time or the internal gnawing that end up being so detrimental to
our productivity, it makes sense to reflect on the professional commandments to
be the guiding light in times of professional overcast-ness.
Here is a quick list of
Top Ten Commandments to breathe new energy into your work lives and to help you
revisit your work practices in order to make your professional ride less bumpy
and more rewarding. One wise tip – this is a list that we should be sensible
and astute enough to keep.
SMILE
WHEN SPEAKING ON THE PHONE
We, as hoteliers, have
been told the importance of the above innumerable times. And this does not just
hold good for Guest Relations or Sales staff. It applies to all – whether you
open doors, carry luggage, devise strategies, cook award winning meals, pour
the glass of expensive wine or sit in the corner office managing the entire
show.
It is a proven fact and
a golden rule of training that people can ‘see’ you smile over a telephonic
conversation. And smiling when speaking on the phone (and in these times on Skype,
chats, Vimeo or what have you) is a surefire clincher for a deal and the super
glue that has the propensity to seal your business relationship.
Whether you are a PR
person, a journalist, a service provider, a client, a telecaller, a smile is
the perfect bridge over which you should lug your professional wares; even when
dishing out something that may not be too palatable.
REPLY
/ RESPOND / REVERT
No matter how busy you
are and which chair you fill up, there is just no excuse for you not to reply
to anything addressed to you. In fact, it is plain bad manners if you don’t.
I once had a boss who
would respond to everybody on every message that he received – himself and not
through his secretary – even as he ran one hell of a busy show at work. One
great lesson I learned from him – as long as you respond, even with a word or a
line you have covered a lot of ground.
And today, with all
those smart phones, palm tops, voice-controlled software occupying our
communication space, there is just no getting away from minding this facet of
our professional p’s and q’s.
BE
COURTEOUS
Actually, what
triggered the thought process for this piece was a brief and hugely curt
(impinging on rude) exchange with a career consultant. Yes, you heard me right!
A consultant who earns his bread and butter from dealing with clients in an
extremely people-centric job profile! The person on the other side had given
out her name as the contact person to a job posted out; which means that she
was willing to receive queries or had been put in this role by her superior –
in both cases it was her job to handle such queries. Our conversation started
with an abrupt verbal whack of a crude ‘Yes’ as the manner of addressing a
phone call and stayed largely monosyllabic in content and monotonic in
character. The result of this acerbic dialogue was, as expected, unpleasant –
the lady with her un-lady like and unprofessional behaviour teased out the
aggressive side of me, put herself in a spot where she could have been flagellated,
set the unfriendly tone for the conversation which she would have difficulty in
retracting, formed an image of her in my mind that told me that either she was
not happy with her job or with what she was asked to do or simply that she was
not a happy and pleasant person in the first place.
In the area of
hospitality, we are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen; as the
Ritz Carlton Hotel Company so beautifully describes. And this holds true for
every service sector; actually to the non-service ones too. I am reminded of
the patriarch of the Indian hotel industry, who I have had the pleasure and
privilege to work with and who would always address me in his rich baritone as
‘Ms. Dhir’ – an employee on some rung on the executive ladder in one of his
hotels. He set a fine example and chalked out a wonderful template to be
emulated by all his employees, whichever of his hotels they worked in, in
whatever country.
If you are taking the
trouble to step out from the cozy comfort of your hearth and go out into the
big bad and competitive world of work – to make a name or living or moolah or
all – you owe it to the world and your professional persona to be courteous,
always, even when your patience, intellect, wit and wisdom are sorely tried. There
is just no other way, buddy.
BE
GRATEFUL
In the professional
cosmos, attitude enjoys the same pride of place as does aptitude. And your
attitude will be defined to a large extent by this basic approach to life. You
have a job, a good job that pays you well, recognizes your contribution and
allows you to grow; then there is a lot going for you to be grateful for. In
the cosmic sphere of work and in life itself, it pays to be karmic and somewhat
spiritual about the station you are placed in and the destination you are
driving towards.
What the heck, in
today’s times of global recession and retrenchment, just having a job that pays
is one hell of a reason to be grateful for.
A sense of gratitude
will keep you grounded and help you not be a stuffed shirt that nobody ever
likes. Besides, the attitude you throw into the Universe always comes back to
haunt or enchant you, as the case may be.
BE A CORPORATE SOCIAL CITIZEN
With the shrunk global
boundaries and innumerable bridges built on the information superhighway and
business networks, you cannot just keep yourself isolated in your corner of the
office in that part of the world.
With protests playing
out on Twitter, causes finding windows of visibility on Facebook, issues being
thrashed out in intellectually stimulated forums on LinkedIn, stay aloof at
your own risk.
Now, much more than
before, there is enough opportunity for us to align ourselves with causes that
speak to us and in the process get our organizations involved. Being
responsible and conscientious as an individual paves the way; and getting all
that corporate muscle of your organization behind you provides a remarkable
fillip to the causes espoused.
Warren Buffet, Bill and
Melinda Gates, Azim Premji, Oprah Winfrey are known as much for their
philanthropic pursuits as for their business acumen and for appearing on the
lists of World’s most famous, most influential and rich. With such examples
before us, why wouldn’t we want to join the league!
NO WATER COOLER MOMENTS OF ADDING TO THE GRAPEVINE
We have been told by
our mothers first and then by our bosses, that what goes around comes around.
If you dish the muck out, it is bound to splatter on you.
No matter how much
relief, momentary pleasure or feeling of getting back to somebody this nasty
habit brings, we should resist this sordid escape route from stress and look
out for brighter, more positive and fruitful avenues to make it a win-win
situation.
I cherish the
reputation I have built on honesty, integrity, hard and clean work. I am not
willing to compromise that and I am, certain, no well-bred professional worth
his salt would wish to.
When we have so many
positive and exciting choices available to vent out our ire – social media for
one; when there are discussion forums where we can share our feedback and learn
from others’ experiences in a positively motivated manner away from the
pettiness; then why would I want to be known as the person who cannot be
trusted, who has a weak mouth and a weaker gut.
POLISH UP THE ABC OF MY BEHAVIOUR
My behavior is a reflection
of my personality. My behavior is a wholesome whole of the subsets of my
thoughts, prejudices and beliefs. With this monumental legacy straddling on my
behavior, I cannot afford to shortchange it for something less exemplary.
Besides, I can only control my actions guided by my behavior and cannot be held
responsible for other’s reactions. Hence, I better learn to keep my yard clean
first.
Here’s my crisp ABC -
Enthusiasm in my Attitude – as it helps me be more
productive, is infectious, assists me in sailing through choppy seas at work
and rise and shine even when it’s overcast.
Buddy
Up with the team and bulldoze to tease out the best talent in
all so that the common pool of excellence always strives to create, innovate
and perform remarkably.
Compassion
in my Character – It is an age old Tao that I have no business to judge others
unless and until I have walked their unique paths. Just as in life, in the
sanitized sanctum of office too, we need to show compassion to our peers, our
subordinates and yes to our bosses as well.
BE RESPONSIBLE
For my words, for my
actions, for my portfolio, for my team and its actions. And never think of
passing the buck. With responsibility come great rewards, greater recognition
and a far bigger sense of accomplishment.
When we get into our
careers, we always anticipate an upward growing graph which is the barometer of
what we learn along the way and more importantly, how much and of what value we
contribute back. It is being responsible that puts us in a happily receptive
place for greater heights and hurrahs.
BE CLEAR IN MY COMMUNICATION
No adding to the
confusion. No being verbose, needlessly. No increasing the information overload
without the gravitas. No using unnecessary jargon.
Whatever be your line
of expertise and choice of vocation, clarity in communication is one of your
biggest assets. It helps you be unambiguous and be clearly understood. Plus all
that headache and loss of time you save yourself from when something is said
and something completely else is unwittingly grasped. What a nightmare of an
office situation that is!
BE A SOLUTION SEEKER TO THE PROBLEM AND NOT BE THE PART OF THE PROBLEM
There are enough of us
releasing hot air in meetings, raking up issues on email, taking to the
equivalent of temper tantrums at work; instead of bringing calm to a turbulent
situation, soothing out frayed nerves, bringing sense to the table, giving
solace to team members and generally being the ‘sweep soul staff’ who could
endeavour to keep the place clean, harmonious and balanced on an even keel.
There will always be
problems at work – personnel-related, business-centric, performance (or the
lack thereof) – led, market-induced, competition-created, economic, political,
even ethnic or religiously motivated. What will make you stand out as a leader
will be your accent on these situations, the ability to right the wrong, the
perspicacity to influence others, to assist the management to steer to more
stable waters and above-all to add to the bottomline as problems unhandled or
mishandled are directly proportional to business adversely affected.
Have a wonderful
journey on your careerway and continue to be the star, both as a person and a
professional!
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