Not the Way We Treat People: 21 Items

Several years ago I heard of some local executives who, after seeing rude and arrogant behavior by a newly-employed vice president, called him aside and said, "That's not the way we treat people here."

That raises a good question: Just what is on your organization's Don't List? Let's set aside the monster infractions, such as bullying and bigotry, and list some that might not seem as severe but which can be very harmful. How about the following?

We don't:

1. Say one thing and do another;


2. Reward only our friends and allies;


3. Hog the limelight;


4. Let people get trapped in jobs;


5. Set people up for failure;


6. Build power by hoarding information;


7. Squander time via excessive meetings;


8. Fail to develop talent;


9. Look to our own comfort first;


10. Dine out for years on past accomplishments;


11. Routinely ignore the rules;


12. Treat nonservants as servants;


13. Act as if our associates don't have a private life;


14. Talk down to people;


15. Rush to blame others;


16. Forget our manners;


17. Get too full of ourselves;


18. "Phone in" our work;


19. Underestimate the power of ill-chosen words;


20. Intentionally create conflict; and


21. Treat people with indifference.