#219: Behaving with mirrors

Do you want to improve the behavior of people at work? Do you want them to be nicer? Better yet, do you want to be better behaved and be a nicer person?

Do it with mirrors.

Research has shown that people behave better when there is a mirror in the room. People tend to work harder, are more ethical, are less stereotypical in their judgments. In fact, they are simply nicer people altogether.

Why is this? It seems that the virtual person watching from the mirror makes people in the room more self-aware. This greater self-awareness makes them think before they act, which then results in better behavior.

So go ahead, hang some mirrors in your office. But be clear what sort of behavior you want to encourage. I recently saw a dilapidated adult entertainment bar. I was not surprised that it had gone out of business. It’s exterior walls were covered by huge mirrors. Big mistake.



I’m JamesMcIntosh@nonsenseatwork.com

Copyright: 2008 James Henry McIntosh

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