According
to a recent Wall
Street Journal article about “niceness” and earnings, workers who were
considered agreeable, made less money on average than their meaner colleagues.
A new study finds that agreeable
workers earn significantly lower incomes than less agreeable ones. The gap is
especially wide for men.
The researchers examined
"agreeableness" using self-reported survey data and found that men
who measured below average on agreeableness earned about 18% more—or $9,772
more annually in their sample—than nicer guys. Ruder women, meanwhile, earned
about 5% or $1,828 more than their agreeable counterparts.
But is
it as simple as the data might suggest? Do mean workers really earn more money.
Or, is it that those who are willing to appropriately disagree when it benefits
them are financially rewarded by superiors?
We’re willing to say the latter.
While it certainly won’t win many raises and promotions to engage in
nasty behavior with your boss or co-workers, the willingness to press for a
raise, promotion or the implementation of your bright idea could earn you the
respect of your superiors. That respect can translate into higher earnings and
promotions that elude more agreeable workers. So in which areas should
attorneys avoid overly nice behavior?
*
Salary negotiations – When it comes to compensation, being “nice” really
doesn’t pay. Respectfully demand what’s
due to you.
*
Getting credit for profitable ideas – Failure to get credit for projects or
solutions you created could cause someone else to get all the praise and money
for your good ideas. Attorneys are
served well by the skill to carefully make it clear that they were the
originators of an idea or solution.
*
Office bullying – While many attorneys mistakenly believe that tolerating
bullies in the workplace will win them points for being agreeable, the truth is
that they may be viewed as a doormat.
Attorneys who can skillfully deflect or even tame office bullies are
likely to be seen as tough but civil colleagues good at handling difficult
people.