Good Morning, Mr So and so...

Workplace manners...

Like saying good morning, hello to colleagues in the morning, offering guest a drink, speak loudly across the room, using swear words, taking calls on mobile phones, asking permission when using stationary, and not asking about personal life in the office, addressing one by their last name, ...

Well, all these constitutes a good workplace manners.

Mind your workplace manners -- it pays
Thu Jan 15, 9:48 am ET
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090115/lf_nm_life/us_jobs_manners

Hmmm... dear readers, think about it.

How many "good manners" do you practise back in your office? Or rather, the most simple thing... Do you say "good morning" to your colleagues when you reach office in the morning?

I realised one thing.

I had very bad manners back in my office.

Let me start by imagining it to be the morning, when i went to work. There's no good mornings exchanged. I reached office, start my computer and started making some enquries or report or even answer some questions from my boss.

No "good morning".

Sometimes, it's to the extend that my boss has to call me even before i reach office, asking me, "where are you? how come you not in office? you know what's the time now?" No "good morning" from my boss either...

In fact, most of the time, I committed all the "offences" that's deemed as a bad workplace behaviour. I talk loudly, or rather, shouted across the room, especially in the factory, I swear and curse, when things are not going right, I grab my colleague's stationary without using permission. I take calls from my mobile phone. No "good morning" from me, coz by the time i reach office, i think most would not constitute that time as "morning".

I was going on about the asking personal life part, then i stopped.

I don't. I wouldn't. I didn't.

Well, at least, I ain't so bad, right?

But then, if i am to observe all the "rules" of good workplace manners, i think i cannot survive. Too formal.

Everytime need to borrow something, you have to do this, imagine. You go to the pantry, make a cup of coffee, walk over to your colleague, talk to him softly, "Good morning, Mr Tan, can i borrow a blue pen from you please? Anyway, here's a cup of coffee for you... Thanks!!"

Or imagine this, during lunchtime, you went out for lunch with your colleagues. "Mr Tan, it's lunch time. Can i have the pleasure to invite you to join me for lunch today?"

@_@

Too formal. To me, too formal can create gaps, which one does not know what the other is doing. And not knowing what others are thinking. No friendship at the workplace, which true friendship to me is as simple as this, in the morning... "Siao eh.... ho sei bo?" Instead of "Good morning Mr Tan. How's your day today?"

Yep. That's S.O thinking. So, what's yours?