Creating good ‘work karma’

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/03/2024 (658 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Dear Money Lady,

I don’t have a question but rather a comment. I know you write about millennials a lot and I just wanted to add to that. We recently hired 12 new staff to our growing business and all of them are under 35. Maybe we just got lucky, but they are all great. We didn’t aim for all the new hires to be younger workers, but it just worked out that way and I must say it has given us new and wonderful work karma.

Melinda P.

Melinda, I picked your email comment because I loved the phrase “work karma.” Thank you.

No matter what your age, being a good co-worker is so important, especially now, when so many people are working from home. It can be so easy to send out inappropriate emails or comment in a non-professional manner. According to a 2023 Marketplace study, office etiquette is slipping. It is important to remember that most people tend to have long, elephant-like memories when it comes to work, whether good or bad. Taking the high road should always be your goal, even if it means a short-term sacrifice.

Canadians will work one third of their lives or the equivalent of 90,000 hours. That’s a lot of time if you’re not happy. Creating a great “work karma” makes life better, makes businesses more successful, and makes workers more productive. It should be the goal of every business, large or small, to foster a good environment.

Here are some tips for doing so:

• Never bad-mouth people, even when they are deserving. Try not to lower yourself into a ‘bash-fest.’ If others look to you for reinforcement of their cattiness, simply shrug your shoulders, roll your eyes, or shake your head in bewilderment rather than contributing to the conversations.

• Never break a confidence. It seems that nowadays no one can keep a secret, but we should try.

• Thank a person who has done you a good turn and not just with an email; put some feeling into it. Certain favours are worth a phone call, a handwritten thank you note, flowers or a lunch invitation. Always be gracious and don’t let being too busy be the reason for not thanking someone.

• Compliment your co-workers when speaking to other people, especially management. This not only helps your co-workers, but it also makes you look good, too.

• When you leave an employer, never bad-mouth people in your former company, (no matter how much you believe they deserve it). You never want to be known as ‘the complainer.’ Interested new co-workers may love to hear your stories but remember, this will most likely reflect badly on you.

As a last tip, always try to be transparent. Remember that people don’t know what you know unless you tell them and keep them up-to-date. It is difficult to be collaborative when you are missing key facts. Pooling resources and creating a diverse work environment allows businesses to lean on the different backgrounds, skills, and experiences of their staff to create new ideas and innovative approaches for future growth.