A Marine veteran reveals a trick for earning respect fast

pulse

March 9, 2017 7:25 PM

US Marine veteran Angie Morgan, the coauthor of "Spark," explains how to earn your coworkers' respect when you're young or new to the organization.

Angie Morgan pictured while serving in the Marines.

Everyone has his or her own definition of success. It's a nice idea.

Except that in practice, that concept doesn't always make sense. When you start at a new company, it's up to you learn how your team defines success — and to start implementing that knowledge, stat.

That's according to Angie Morgan, a Marine veteran who is a coauthor, along with Courtney Lynch and Sean Lynch, of the new book "Spark: How to Lead Yourself and Others to Greater Success." Morgan and Courtney Lynch are cofounders of the leadership development firm Lead Star, where Sean Lynch is a senior consultant.

Morgan visited the Business Insider office in March and shared what she said was the best way to earn your coworkers' respect when you're the youngest or least experienced person on the team:

"This is the perfect opportunity to stop and observe what successful people in the organization are doing. Try to understand those behaviors. Reflect upon yourself and say: How am I or how am I not demonstrating those behaviors?"

Maybe, for example, your organization values people who take initiative, demonstrate creativity, or think on their feet.

"Ask yourself: How can I get on that path so I can be influential in this environment?" Morgan said. "It's really important to isolate out the behavior, because we can develop those behaviors."

Remember: Even if you're technically the lowest person on the totem pole, you can still be influential in your organization. The way Morgan sees it, your behaviors — not your official title — are what distinguish you as an outstanding performer and as a leader.

Bottom line: Observe closely those coworkers you admire. If you start acting like the successful people around you, Morgan says, you'll eventually become one of them.

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