What is Respect?
Respect is a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements. It is an understanding of how important someone or something is, and should be treated in an appropriate way. With respect comes consideration, awe and deference.
To be accepted by others you need to accept yourself first. This means that in order for you to earn the respect of others you need to stop focusing on yourself and start thinking about others, how you can help, and inspire change, growth and innovation into their life. Earning respect takes a lot of work, and the way others perceive you isn’t completely based on your level of education, what schools you may have attended or your social circle. In order to be successful and achieve things in life it is important that you earn the respect of people around you. This can only be achieved by learning to give respect, act and think with confidence, and behave in a reliable way. Once you start doing these things, you’ll start to earn the respect you deserve from others in no time.
7 Tips on Respecting Yourself and Others
As said earlier respecting yourself is the foundation for leading a life of integrity and honour, because if you do not truly love yourself and respect yourself as a person then others likely won’t. Below is a list of character traits that you must exhibit in order to earn other people’s respect:
Practice integrity
Researchers have stated that with having a sense of internal focus or control over one’s own life is a very important condition for mental health. When you have a healthy sense of control which comes from exercising your right to set your own priorities, saying “no” whenever you need to without feeling guilty, protecting yourself from harm, choosing healthy relationships, getting what you paid for, and creating your own happiness in life. Sometimes, it is simply a wiser decision to take good care of yourself first, be upright in your words and have a firm standing on what is right so you can in turn be better at relating with others. You certainly have the power to make a good decision and no one can take this power away from you unless you allow it. This is the first key in earning respect.
Keep to your promises
No one will give you the light of the day if you keep going back on your word. So far this is one of the most important actions you need to heed in other to gain the respect you deserve. If in the past you took your commitments for granted, you need to change that attitude now. Always honor commitments and promises because people who depend on you to come through for them do so with a lot of trust, which you need to respect. If perhaps you are having a lot of trouble keeping your commitment or promise, then that means you make too many promises that you can’t fulfill.
Don’t gossip about others
You need to respect others even if you don’t like them. When you refer to someone that isn’t with you at the time, do so as if he or she is right there in your presence. While everyone has desirable and undesirable traits, you need to remember this and talk from this fundamental belief. When you refer to people behind their backs, your reputation becomes at stake and you will quickly become irrelevant.
Practice humility
Pride goes before a fall. Remember you are not always going to be right all the time, and you’re not the best at everything. In life, every person you meet can add value to your perspective on life, and be assured that true confidence doesn’t come from a place where you’re the best, but it comes from understanding humility, indulging in humble acts and knowing that every individual has something unique to offer to the world, which includes you.
Add real value to others
One way or the other you’re part of a community, an organisation, and a team of workers or a group of friends. In order to earn their respect you always need to think of ways to impact value in the life of others. While values can come in many different forms, in the end it’s always about what you are offering to the world or to your community at large that can aid them in solving a problem. By paying attention to the people in your life and surroundings, and showing concern about what happens and adding your quota to building the community. If you create something of value, people will respect you.
Believe in your ideas
Don’t discard your ideas because someone says they are bad. Even if they seem funny, weird, or far-fetched, you need to embrace your creativity and follow through with your ideas if you want people to admire them. Nobody said it would be easy, but the one thing you might follow through with might end up being a great achievement and will garner other people’s respect and awe of you for such a unique idea. When people believe their ideas to be too far-fetched they become afraid to follow up or implement them. The thing is, most people have these unique ideas but they consider others’ opinion before theirs.
Be in Control of your Emotions
The way you react in the presence of people says a lot about you. You need to identify those things that make you highly emotional and learn to curb or keep your reactions to them in check, whether it is good or bad. While it is ok to react normally and show your feelings, be sure to remember that good leaders and well respected people know the difference between responding and reacting to emotions. The former is understandable but the latter is not a good habit and should be put in check if you desire respect.
Respect is reciprocal, this means you should do unto others as you would like to be treated. By giving others their due respect you earn theirs in return. And by maintaining the above tips you will never lose your respect.