Through this article, you will notice which of those behaviors should be avoided if you want to make your workplace a safe and positive environment. In the end, as a leader, we have the opportunity to elevate our employees’ mindest.
1.- Interrupting to correct people’s pronunciation
The first behavior we will start with is the constant interruption of people’s pronunciation. What do I mean by this? When you and a co-worker are buying a coffee, and you correct your co-worker’s pronunciation by saying, “Um, it’s actually ‘essss-presso,’ not ‘ex-presso.’”
Interrupting to correct someone’s pronunciation of a foreign language, for example, will always cause awkwardness. If the conversation is casual, and someone mispronounces a name or a word, there’s a good chance it’s not worth correcting them at all.
2.- Saying, “Take it easy.”
For women, in particular, being told to “Take it easy” is peak patronizing. Adjacent, equally aggravating directives include “Chill out,” “Calm down,” and “Relax!” No matter who you’re speaking to, when you tell someone to “Take it easy,” you suggest that their excitement, concern, or general response to something is excessive or invalid.
3.- Patting people on arm or head
This might seem like a no-brainer, but it happens more often than you’d think. In general, it’s not a great idea to touch people who aren’t family members or close friends. Furthermore, arm or head-patting is never okay. If you pat someone, they will invariably be forced to look at you—in confusion or possibly an attempt to displace your hand—and then you’ll find yourself in the literal predicament of “looking down on them.”
4.- Telling someone, “Come on, you know better than that.”
This sort of “sigh, shame-on-you” comment can be used in all kinds of situations but is almost always experienced as condescending. It’s the sort of thing an exasperated parent would say to their child, so when one adult says it to another, they sound like a scold. Say you’re having a debate over politics, and someone says, “Come on, you know better than that.” You can’t help but feel like they’re belittling your perspective as short-sighted and childish.
These are typical behaviors we usually do when leading projects and teams. It is always safe to look back and check our actions before relating with our co-workers or employees. Finding new and positive ways to influence and communicate will create excellent leaders.
You may also read: 8 Time Management errors to fix on this 2022.
