- Be a pleasant, friendly person. Try to be a pleasant, friendly person to everyone around you, even people you may not know. For example, greet the cashier who's ringing up your coffee in the morning. Say "have a nice day!" when you leave. Here's a fun one:
Canadian politeness never ceases to amaze (just witnessed): man drops object, other man apologies to the first in calling him back; man who dropped object apologies (for dropping the object?) and then says thank you.
— Jimmy Lin (@lintool) May 25, 2019
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Treat admin and support staff with respect. This one has always baffled me, as I frequently hear about colleagues (and sometimes even students) mistreating staff. First, it's just not right (see point above). Second, even from a purely selfish, Machiavellian perspective, that's not even a wise move. As a faculty member, admin and support staff manage my accounts, handle my reimbursements, help with personnel matters (e.g., appointment paperwork), and generally keep me out of trouble ("No, Jimmy, you can't spend money on that from this account"). My life would be miserable if I had to do all of that myself. Be nice to admin and support staff!
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Don't do over email what a simple in-person visit could handle more efficiently. There's really a reason why offices, labs, and campuses still exist — there are many interactions that still need to happen face to face. I've seen plenty of long email threads that could have been avoided if the person making the request had just went down the hall for a quick chat. Ask yourself, "Would this be faster if I just went by Alice's office?"