Respect
“Respect”
A word everyone knows but few seem to understand. From Aretha Franklin to hastily scrawled slogans on motivational posters, everyone preaches about respect. With so much awareness, one would only have to wonder, what happened? If you head to any forum online, or any classroom across America, you’ll see the same sad trend. There’s a lack of respect and awareness for anyone from everyone, but the song remains the same, “respect is earned, not given.” That sounds an awful lot like a credit score. In truth, we build a lot of respect and trust by how we treat others. Someone who views his peers and strangers as inferiors probably demands respect or has a very poor concept of how it works. Often enough, respect comes from a mutual understanding of admiration, given as a loan in hopes of receiving the same. Though the world has moved on from the “Leave it to Beaver” neighborhood, the philosophies and values are still very much relevant, even if they are scarce.
With the advent of social media and online forums, people grew more and more accustomed to the anonymity provided by the veil of a blue screen. This screen allowed people to step out more brazenly, forsaking common courtesy and decency for a snide remark here and there. Eventually, this trend would evolve into an entirely new level of irreverence, but not before the attitudes expressed online became more prominent offline. As a people, we’ve forgotten how to be decent and give courtesy to strangers and bystanders. Children lose sight of values instilled from family interactions in place of humor picked up from entertainment media. As a result, they don’t view traditions, authority figures, or even peers with any degree of respect or admiration. In light of this, the times we live in have become an expression of cynicism and an apathetic approach to relationships and values. Respect starts at home and carries anywhere you go.
Whether or not you’re at work or getting a bite to eat, there’s no one who isn’t worth your respect. Courtesy is given not out of expectations, but because you can rise above the muck around you. What makes you worthy of respect? What qualities are worthy of admiration and appreciation? Consider for a moment the people in your life who you look up to and consider models. What traits of theirs set them apart from everyone else? It’s important to realize that to someone, you may be that model and inspiration. With social media being so broad and expansive, you can be certain that all eyes are on you. To earn respect, you should endeavour to be worthy of respect. With hard work, courtesy, and maintaining a level of professionalism and integrity, your attitude will say more about you than words ever could.
