10 Ways To Earn the Respect of Others - by Dumb Little Man
This is an interesting article on how to earn the respect of others. I've actually given this concept a great deal of thought.
I have concluded that there is no way to make other people respect you. Respect is earned, and there's not necessarily any one particular way to earn it. Also, what will gain you the respect of one person won't work on another. (Also, there are some people out there that I don't think live by the same values I do and I might prefer not to have their respect anyway)
In fact, I would posit that there's not point trying to earn other people's respect, only to earn your own respect. If you live a life that is meaningful and "right" to yourself, you will have the respect of the one person who matters the most.
I know that I have the respect of my parents, and that means a lot to me. I definitely respect them. (My mom, for example, is one of the best money managers and finders of travel deals in the universe. My dad is one of the smartest people I have ever met also patient, sensitive, and even tempered.)
As far as people I work with, well... I would like to be respected in my field, but I know better than to really worry about it. I just slog along and do the best I can in the circumstances I am in. I generally do my best and try very hard to help the people I work with. And I work with a lot of very smart people so they are pretty demanding - you can't pull a snow job on them. Which is good because another one of my policies I live by is to always tell the truth. Life is too short for me to lie - I am not comfortable doing it and if people expect me to they will be disseminated. I actually think that telling the truth is not a great way to earn respect because a lot of the time people really don't want to hear the truth. And I have also learned that there are ways to sort of avoid over explaining things that can satisfy my need to tell the truth while also allowing me to stay off the hot seat. Leaving out details is ok sometimes...
In conclusion - I am not trying to take over the world, run for public office, or be the head of the office clique. I do my own thing. I am a people pleaser by nature, but time and experience have helped me understand that it is simply not possible to please everyone all the time.
As for respect, I respect myself and I respect my family and friends. What comes back to me comes back to me and is appreciated. If not, that's ok too.
