Interacting with the people around me is one of my favorite pastimes – whether it’s a flight attendant, a waiter or waitress, or even a mechanic. I’ve found out that paying attention to and being respectful to those people who are around me goes a very long way. Paying attention to others and respecting them will enrich your life, and smooth your path in countless ways. Have you ever noticed that when you wave and smile and say “thank you” to a flight attendant, you see them perk up? Do you know the name of the cleaning lady in your building at work? Have you ever stopped and talked to her? What about the security guards? Do you know any of their names?
5 People You Should Respect
- Your Spouse. Your spouse needs time and attention. Relationships need watering and feeding. Many relationships are harder for lack of attention. Which also means that if they do pay you attention, don’t rip their head off. It goes both ways. Respecting and honoring your spouse needs to come high on your priority list. I am not going to lie and say it’s always easy, because it’s not. After over 25 years of marriage, I’ve learned that this mutual respect is a requirement.
- The Admin at Work. Seriously, the admin at work runs the place. Get on their good side, and you’re golden. Get on their bad side, and things will not go so easily for you. Tips for admins include stopping to say hi, and see how they’re doing. Let them know you care, and you want to get to know them. You can change the course of your career by being respectful and kind to the people who support you. Their job is to make you look good, so why wouldn’t you want to make them happy they helped you?
- Your children’s teachers. They hold your children’s future in their hands (literally). Make sure that they know you are on their side, and are not going to be a helicopter parent. Make a point of sending in items for the classroom, or volunteering when they need it. Send in extra items when they ask for things, because teachers spend many, many hours taking care of, teaching, and nurturing your children. Teachers also spend too much of their own money out of pocket each year to do the same, so be kind and take good care of your childrens’ teachers.
- Your Hairdresser. You can learn so much from your hairdresser, and they know everything about your hair. Do you want them to do their best for you, and tell you what looks good, what doesn’t, and what the current trends are? Hairdressers tend to be some of those people in the community who are ultra-connected. After all, they meet people all day long from all walks of life. Now imagine what getting on their good side can do for you!
- The security guards, the cleaning crew, and the dock staff. You may need their help some day. I was always amazed while my previous employer at how many things I was able to accomplish, simply because I paid attention to these people, whether it was super quick delivery of packages, to finding supplies or other things that made my life – and my team’s life easier. I think it also says a ton about someone when you watch how they treat people who are sometimes consider to be “beneath” them, or lower in stature. I also noticed how the people who took the best care of the support staff got the best service, and got what they needed so much faster.
The other reason that you should pay respect to people is good karma. Being nice and pleasant doesn’t cost you a penny. Building relationships only takes a tiny bit of effort, and showing people respect is so easy. Why wouldn’t you do it? There really isn’t a good reason not to. I made a point of building relationships with my dad’s caregivers, his doctors, geriatric care managers, and other caregivers. Those relationships have paid off exponentially. In my case, it may be a bit more extreme than most, but his caregivers are key to my new home care business, because we like and trust one another. We respect each other.
You can tell a lot about people by the way they treat others around them, particularly those who can’t do anything about it. Next time you’re at a restaurant watch and see how people interact with the waitstaff. They are some of the best people at turning hardships into wins. Customers who are a pain are a regular feature for them.
Who do you think is routinely overlooked that should be noticed more often? Who are some people you should show some respect? Comment below!
