My 12 Rules for Work

My pal, Graham Edwards asked me to write a response to his blog about his 12 rules for work. Graham is very “first-born child” in his nature, meaning he is more driven to perfection and even a bit bossier than this last-born child, who really just wants to have fun. So here are some things that I think are important to incorporate into your work. If you've got some ideas on this subject, we'd both love to hear them.

1. Be passionate about your work, or at least find an element of it that excites you. For the life of me, I don’t know why anyone would accept to work at a job they hate for 40 years. If I had to choose between money and my sanity, I’d find a way to preserve my sanity every time. If you do what you love, work will never ruin that vibe and you will more naturally do your job well.

2. Be prepared to do your best work. Be on time and get organized. I know I said I wanted to have fun, but let’s face it. Being disorganized, letting people down and delivering sub-par work isn’t exactly fun. We all need to take pride in our accomplishments, so being prepared to do your best is the only way that will happen.

3. Dress the part. Never show up looking like a slob. There’s something very helpful about getting into a work mindset as you begin your day. I’ve always felt that looking sloppy at work was an indication of a lack of interest in being the best you can be. I used to chastise my sales people if they showed up for work looking like they slept in their car.

4. Be open to ideas and input from others. Two heads are better than one. If input from others helps move things forward and creates a better outcome, then accept that you don’t know everything and give consideration to input from others.

5. Make decisions and move forward. Nothing frustrates me more than working with people who can’t make decisions and get things done. You cannot do anything well if you are always afraid of making the wrong decision. Making no decision or waffling on decisions is far worse than making an imperfect decision. Perfection is an impossible standard and is a symptom of internal discord. Get over yourself, give your head a shake, make a decision and make it work. Look who’s bossy now!

6. Establish deadlines and adhere to them. I agree with Graham that nothing gets done without expectations and objectives, so one of those expectations must be a deadline.

7. Establish objectives and meet them. Ditto.

8. Be flexible enough to change your objectives or path if it no longer seems relevant or appropriate. Sometimes we get into a job and realise we could be doing it better, or that we are wasting our time. If that’s the case, then do what you have to do and change course. Just make sure you are doing it for the right reasons. See point number five.

9. Share the load by offering help to others and by accepting help from others. Don’t be a workplace martyr, taking on all the work and the credit for completion of a project. People like that are real control freaks and make me sick because they never manage to meet deadlines and they never get it done as well as they could have if they let others help. Conversely, don’t be a lazy-ass and accept to contribute nothing of value to the team you are supposed to be a part of. In my experience, both of these types of people impede progress.

10. Admit your mistakes and dare to learn from them. Drop your ego at the door. We all goof things up and it is through that process that we learn better ways of doing things. Mistakes are growth opportunities. Enjoy the opportunity to create expansion.

11. Be light-hearted. Nobody wants to work with miserable people. As Dale Carnegie says, if you want to get along with people, don’t condemn, criticize or complain. The only thing you can fully control is your attitude, and since positivity is contagious and negativity is toxic, you would be well advised to try to light up your day by being the light in someone else’s day.

12. Be brave and do the right thing, even when nobody else is. If you work in an environment that turns a blind eye to cheating, stealing, backstabbing, etc., dare to be different and do the right thing. That’s called having integrity. Sometimes it pisses people off, but your self-respect is invaluable.

That’s my list of 12 rules, and I must admit, I also like Graham’s list. I have a feeling that if we put our heads together we could easily come up with 100 rules for work.

Few public relations & communications specialists have as diverse a background as Renée Cormier. Add published author, employee engagement specialist, sales and marketing strategist, entrepreneur and educator to her list of accomplishments. In her career Renée has held leadership roles in sales and marketing, developed and implemented national marketing strategies and was responsible for teams as large as 28 strong. She brings a wide range of experience and talent to her work.

Renée really shines in communications. She is known for developing and implementing comprehensive communications strategies and generating results through flawless implementation. With such strong business acumen, passion for her work and a natural talent for business strategy, Renée is definitely considered an important resource for her clients. Is your business in transition? Do you need help with your communications or public relations efforts? Contact Renée through her website.

Follow me on Twitter @reneecormierpr.