Presumption Has No Place In Our Relationships at Work

Presumption can detract from an ordered and peaceful environment on the job. To successfully maintain a peaceful, stable environment requires care and attention. In a properly ordered workplace, people know their place. Thiscan promote a greater degree of stability than you'll find in chaotic and unpleasant places to work. And that greater stability - primarily less turnover of employees - can ultimately help the enterprise succeed.

Consider how presumption may threaten order, peace, and stability in the workplace. St. Benedict surely did, and we'd be wise to listen to his directive here:

"Every occasion of presumption should be avoided in the monastery. So we decree that no one be allowed to excommunicate or strike any of his brethren, except the abbot have given him authority."

As we saw when considering the dangers cliques can present to a workplace, we find a similar concern with presumption.

Presumption can be a neutral, descriptive term:

"an idea that is taken to be true, and often used as the basis for other ideas, although it is not known for certain: underlying presumptions about human nature."

Or it can be an undesirable habit 

"behavior perceived as arrogant, disrespectful, and transgressing the limits of what is permitted or appropriate: he lifted her off the ground, and she was enraged at his presumption."

It's the latter that concerns us here.

Presumptuous people typically don't know their limits. St. Benedict references monks who decide to impose disciplinary measures (striking another, excommunicating them). The problem there is that there is a proper authority responsible for such measures when they are called for. And the average monk isn't that proper authority.

Presumptuous people in the workplace take liberties with others in their words and behavior. An obvious example is the male employee (boss or colleague) who offends a female employee with inappropriate comments or, worse, inappropriate physical contact. (By the way, it works the other way around too.)

Of course, these days people are quite sensitive to both vocal and physical manifestation of presumption. You can get in a lot of hot water saying the wrong things or touching the wrong person.

Worse are presumptuous bosses who believe they can do or way whatever suits their fancy. Such people can embarrass, humiliate, bully, even sexually exploit others. Many bosses these days are more careful about what they say or do, but not all. You would think that even the worst sorts of characters would have learned to rein in their presumption, but, alas, some haven't. 

While "authority" seems to be a bad word these days, the fact is clear lines of authority in a workplace can go far to head off presumptuous behavior. While deference to authority may have been exaggerated to some degree in the past, it still has it's place. Authority need not be oppressive. Indeed, it ought not be. A clear line of authority in the workplace fosters and reinforces an environment conducive to good behavior between workers. 

Frankly, the virtue of charity would also help here. If you try to combine charity and presumption, you'll see they don't work at all together. 

Whatever form presumptuous behavior takes, the results are similar. The effect on relationships between people suffers. And that, when allowed to take root and flourish, actively undermines the calm, ordered, peaceful environment which nurtures productivity, employee satisfaction, and, ultimately, stability in the workplace.