Swearing in the Workplace

Networkworld posted an article called Never mind the b******t, swearing at work is a good thing,1 suggesting that swearing in the workplace is good for our working relationships and can help to relieve stress. The New York times however in their article The 4-Letter-Word Patrol is in Pursuit2 takes a look at the negative aspects of swearing in the workplace and the push by some to clean up our language at work.

I have worked in offices where there was a zero tolerance for swearing and in other offices where swearing was common and acceptable. There seems to be a lot of controversy over this issue, but personally I think swearing is inappropriate for the office environment and comes across as unprofessional.

No matter what your position is, however, I would suggest you check what your office policy states to make sure you are in compliance and if your office has a zero tolerance for swearing you need to check your language at the door and be aware of what you are saying as it could affect your career.

1 Networkworld.com, http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/20718, (accessed January 11, 2008)
2 New York Times, http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950CE0D81130F934A15755C0A9679C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all, (accessed January 11, 1008)

Leaving a job!

If you have to leave a job for whatever reason make sure you do it with professionalism. It is never good to burn bridges!

I give two-weeks' notice and make myself available to help in the transition period as much as I can. If there is an overlap I offer to train the new person.

In one job I had I was laid off as a result of government downsizing, but that is still no excuse for being unprofessional. I want to leave on good terms and to be able to use the time I was in the position as a positive experience and a positive reference.

When you leave a position it is also a good time to ask for a reference letter for your records.

Here in an interesting article1 entitled 15 ways to leave your job and another article2 entitled Seven things NOT to do when you leave your job (no matter how tempted you are).

And what if you are fired? Here is an article3 that deals with that situation.

1 Lorenz, Kate, 15 Ways to Leave Your Job, http://www.careerbuilder.ca/CA/JobSeeker/CareerAdvice/ViewArticle.aspx?articleid=174&cbRecursionCnt=1&cbsid=2cffe559602d4f0d8e2580c6348a5ee0-244501006-JG-5&ns_siteid=ns_ca_g_leaving_a_job_on_good_, (accessed September 30, 2007)
2 www.sixwise.com, Seven things NOT to do when you leave your job (no matter how tempted you are), http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/06/01/25/seven_things_not_to_do_when_leaving_your_job_no_matter_how_tempted_you_are.htm, (accessed September 30, 2007)
3 Bruzzese, Anita, Gannett News Service, USA Today, How to Leave a Job Properly, http://www.usatoday.com/money/jobcenter/workplace/quitting/2002-11-20-leaving-job_x.htm, (accessed September 30, 2007)

Blogging can get you fired...

I was interested to find this article on blogging and work. For the complete article click here.

1 Wallack, Todd, "San Francisco Chronicle", Beware if your blog is related to work, http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/01/24/BUGCEAT1I01.DTL, (accessed August 11, 2007)