by Michelle Tuesday

Created on: December 11, 2009   Last Updated: May 08, 2010

Have you ever noticed how some people command respect naturally? It is easy to envy those who always seem to impress, get the challenging projects, and earn the promotions. But while it may not come as naturally to you, respect in the workplace can be yours if you follow a few simple rules of engagement.

1. Do a good job.

This should go without saying, but if you are not performing to the best of your ability, people will know it. Your colleagues are smarter than you give them credit for. If you are putting off work tasks until the last minute, failing to help coworkers when their burdens are heavy, and turning in sub-standard work, your coworkers will label you as lazy. They will feel resentment for you, because while they are putting forth more effort, you are breezing by. Meanwhile, management will not be impressed by your lack of initiative.

On the other hand, if you are a top performer, you turn in quality work, and you help others when you have a spare moment, coworkers and management will notice that, too. Doing a good job is the most effective way to earn respect in the workplace.

2. Be dependable.

If you call out sick excessively, are frequently tardy, or fail to complete work tasks on time, your coworkers will label you as unreliable or undependable. You let people down with these actions, because they suffer indirect consequences. When you fail to show up to work, your colleagues have to pick up the slack. When you are tardy, coworkers must waste time standing around waiting for you to begin that meeting or team project. When you fail to complete that report on time for your manager, she must scramble to throw it together herself, or waste her time chasing you down, so she can turn the information around to upper management.

Be dependable, and people will trust that you have their best interests at heart. Trust earns respect.

3. Listen.

Listening skills are underrated in the workplace. When you fail to listen to what someone is saying to you, you send the message that you don't have time for them, or that you do not value their input, ideas, or concerns.

Listening tells people you care. When people feel that you care about them, they respect you. That goes for the direct report complaining about something, the manager asking you to do something, and the colleague confiding in you about his trouble with his teenage child at home. All of these people will respect you more if they feel that you are listening to them.

People who command respect naturally earn it because high performance, dependability, and listening skills are inherent in them. Not all of us are blessed with these skills, but we can learn them. The more we demonstrate these traits, the more respect we will garner in the workplace.

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