Treat People Like People

I worked with an individual for many years who was an excellent leader. I made a point of spending a lot of time with him because, I learned a lot. His wisdom came down to a pretty basic but powerful idea to treat people like people. I often reflect on this concept. I think it holds a lot more water in our current climate than it has at any point in my lifetime.

More and more, I am finding that as we become more tribal, we are not treating people with the basic human dignity that makes many things go so much easier. Too often we are looking at people as numbers or resources. They are worker hours or votes. They are revenue sources or benefit allocations. They are their role not their soul.

While we are able to predict human behaviour and it is amazing how often people fall into line and do what we expect them to do, that does not mean that they are not individuals. Just because we can push someone’s buttons and elicit a highly predictable result, it does not mean that they don’t have hopes or fears.

So, how do we treat people like people?

We listen. People want to be heard. They want an opportunity to express their opinions. They want to know their point of view has been considered. Most people will understand if their idea isn’t used, especially if they are given an explanation. However, they want to be heard.

At least some of the time we give them what they want.. If it doesn’t cause undue hardship and supports the broader goals, you should have someone do what they want to do. Let them set up their work as they see fit. Let them set their priorities. Let them stumble and learn. They will feel like they matter.

We ask them for help. Too many people are going through life not being acknowledged as a resource. Asking for help shows that you trust someone. It builds a relationship. It makes the person feel valued.

Most importantly, we acknowledge their situation. We make it known that their struggles and triumphs are seen. We make them feel like a valued individual.

COVID messed with us and in this recovery, which will probably last a lot longer than the most serious part of the pandemic, is not going well. We are losing are humanity and we are not doing some of the basics as well as we used to, like treating people like people.

Human

I have been busy lately. There has been a lot going on in the office and I have been working on completing the requirements for a commercial pilot licence. I have found that a lot of what has been going on is technical in nature. I'm good with it but sometimes it removes the human side of things. Measuring headings and distances while you calculate intercept angles is not a job about people.

Having said that, every once in a while, no matter how technical things get there are human moments. There are the moments where you see someone you haven't seen for a while or hear about a new achievement of a co-workers's child. These are moments that really make you smile. You don't really need to seek them out they are there. All you need to do is notice them when they happen.

It may simply be that I'm not having as many human moments as usual which makes the ones that happen stand out a bit more. At any rate, they are there. You can see it when a Elvis impersonator is chatting with a couple of teenagers on the street as you walk home. Yo can see it when the summer students are getting a briefing from the Safety Manager in the construction site you walk past every day. It happens when you chat with an acquaintance while you wait for the rain to slow down.

I've been working in a lot of the technical aspects of my job and I think I've noticed more of the human moments in life. I hope I never lose the ability to be a little awestruck by human moments.

Emergency Vehicles

Lately I have been watching people's behaviour around emergency vehicles. We all see it and from time to time are involved in it. The fire truck is bearing down, light flashing, siren whaling, and everyone gets out of the way as fast as they can and let them through. As you read this you are probably thinking this is no big deal. It's the law.

That's true, it is the law, which is a good thing.

Somewhere along the way, somebody was smart and convincing enough to get a law written that said emergency vehicles get the right-of-way over everything. They get to go through traffic lights. They can speed. They can go the wrong way down a one way street. This is such a good idea it has been adopted throughout the world. As a society we made a good decision.

There is something more than it being the law that makes people react so quickly. In north America, like most of the world, we do not rigidly adhere to traffic laws. Most people speed a bit. Many don't always wear their seat belts all the time. It's not unusual to see a red light run or to see people jaywalk. Turn signals are often neglected. However, when an emergency vehicle has to get through, almost everyone gets out of the way as fast as possible.

You could argue that it is a self-serving action. They may be on the way to save your house or your wife. There may be an element of that in some people's thoughts but I doubt it. If that was the case then people who were driving in a city where they do not know a soul would not rush to get out of the way. However, someone with an out-of-province license plate react just as quickly as anyone else.

I have no scientific evidence but I think it's because deep down we are still neighbourly. As busy and as self absorbed we can become we still care about the plight of others. We do not want to be the one that compounds the harm that another is enduring.

This basic idea gives me hope for humanity. For all the nut jobs, stupid people, moochers, and greedy jerks everyone claims to encounter we all get out of the way so someone we don't know can get the help that they may urgently need. You will never get recognition for moving to the shoulder but we do it anyway and that s enough proof that when the chips are down, humanity still cares.