O.K, so at the risk of revealing my age (*cough), one of my all time favorite television shows (still is), took place in Mayberry RFD, The Andy Griffith show. Andy was the Sheriff and his deputy was a favorite character for everyone who loved that show, the goofy and lovable, Barney Fife.   

    Some of the best shows were the ones where Barney would be sharing all his worldly wisdom with Andy (or "Anj" as he liked to call him), whether it was for his role as Sheriff or as Opie's dad. 

    One episode shows Barney giving Andy parenting advice and telling him how to deal with Opie, "Andy, you've got to 'Nip it in the bud.  Nip it, just nip it in the bud!'" 

    Even though that probably didn't pertain to Opie's situation very well, in many situations in life it does, and that's actually very good advice. 

    Often times in a workplace, when someone see's unacceptable behavior by a team member, rather than addressing it appropriately and taking care of it, or "nipping it in the bud" they may pretend that they don't see it or somehow excuse it.

    I've heard every excuse imaginable for why people's poor performance is tolerated, as in the following examples: "Well, they're so close to retiring that even though they're really offensive to customers, we decided to just look the other way and hope the customers will understand." Or, "I promised my friend I'd give their kid a job because nobody else would hire him."  "They've been here so long and they know more than anyone else. How could we replace them?" Or one of the toughest is, "We're related."

    When an organization has "situational acceptance" of poor performance and behavior, it sends a very clear message to the rest of the team.  It not only devalues everyone on the team, but certainly their customers as well.

    Mission and vision statements have no value, if those in the leadership of an organization don't "walk the talk" more than they "talk the talk." In fact, having these statements hanging on the wall can actually serve as targets for sarcasm and ridicule, if they're seen as hypocritical and not actually being lived out by leadership.

    Although everyone on the team has a different role, they should all be given equal respect and be held to the same high standards of quality work and service provided to both team members and customers.  No one is above or below the bar.  Poor behavior is poor behavior no matter who does it and should be dealt with accordingly.  

 So in the words of the infamous Barney Fife, "Nip it in the bud.  Nip it - just nip it!"

Point Of Perspective:

         I've never met anyone who regretted keeping too high of standards, personally or professionally, but met thousands who regret having lowered them.  Keep 'em HIGH!

                                                                                    Abundant blessings!

                                                                             Joan