Full Transcription for the video lesson below:
Hi there, I’m Farnoosh Brock and if you want to build a successful career you’re in the right place.
Beware the sensitive topics at work.
Today, I talk to you about sensitive topics that may come up at the workplace, and I want to warn you against disclosing too much information. You know these topics, but I want to remind you again to be very careful when they come up. These are:
- Politics
- Religion
- Sex and marital issues
- And to some extent, unconventional lifestyles.
These are topics that are very sensitive, and everyone has a position, a certain set of beliefs, and the best code of conduct at work would be to be very careful when they come up.
Now, this doesn’t mean that you are secretive about it. It’s okay that your bosses and your colleagues that you have a certain religion or that you have a certain standing in politics, but when the topic comes up, if we are passionate about it we tend to go on and on and get into these discussion and certainly some disagreements.
That’s where you need to really be careful because if you happen to disagree with your boss on a certain topic, unbeknownst to you this subconsciously may create distance.
What about freedom of speech then?
I can hear you arguing about freedom of speech. What about freedom of speech? Well, what about it? Every time you exercise freedom of speech, there are consequences especially when it’s at a place like in a corporate culture.
So, I want to warn you to be very careful and at the beginning just watch your behavior. You may already be very, very politically correct or you may be too comfortable and not even realize how far you are going into these topics.
It’s just not worth it because even if the distance that it creates is completely subconscious, it happens and it may affect your future and all of your hard work and your upward mobility and when you’re up for that promotion.
How to handle sensitive topics in 4 steps:
My advice to you is to make sure that next time the topic comes up:
- that you watch what you say,
- that you are careful how you approach it,
- that you are respectful of other people’s opinion and standing and
- that you are very sensitive to how everyone feels about the subject.
It’s better to be safe than sorry in this one, because once the words are out you can’t take it back. That’s my advice to you when it comes to politics, religion, sex and marital issues which should be completely private anyway, and to some extent unconventional lifestyles.
Use your best judgment, but be more careful than you have been and this is going to work out better for you in the future.
I hope this was useful for you, and if you haven’t been promoted in the last nine to twelve months in your career, I want you to know there is something you can do about it.
Get Ahead with Your Diplomacy and Smarts. Here’s How:
What did you learn from this video that you can apply to your job tomorrow? The topics that I covered today take practice and with that practice, you can really hone into the skills that are going to set you apart: Diplomacy and smarts at the workplace.
And if you want to take this further and invest in your advancement at work by using skills and talents that will Crack the Code to Get Promoted is a step by step program for the serious careerist who is hungry for success at corporate. Is that you?
Because no one is going to just tap you on the shoulder to hand you the promotion and the money you have earned. You have to do that for yourself!
