My eight tips for making work a better place:

1. Keep your appointments. Meaning, don't waste people's time by showing up late to meetings or worse, flaking altogether. What's even worse than flaking is flaking without nary a heads-up. This isn't about appearing to be important by having such a busy calendar that you can't keep meetings; it's a simple matter of respect.

2. Be transparent. There's transparent, and then there's transparent. Nothing is acceptable about hiding information or not being willing to share. This couldn't be more true than when you're welcoming new people on to your team. Don't make them constantly fish for information; be willing to proactively onboard them and give them a lay of the land.

3. Collaboration is king. Even if you're the project lead, you have others working with you so make them feel invested in the project. Even if you're the leader, don't make it a dictatorship. Respect your teammates and make them shine by recognizing their contributions.

4. Respect ownership. Everyone wants to feel like they own something and have a sense of accomplishment that they really drove an initiative from start to finish. Don't rain on their parade. Take an interest in their work and be supportive. Heck, offer a few suggestions if you like. But don't try to micromanage and never, EVER go behind someone's back.

5. Positive energy is infectious. Be a virus. As lame as it seems, being cheerful, friendly, and personable are important. They help make you approachable and are like the engine oil in building solid working relationships. We're not robots; we're human.

6. Have people's back. This is similar to #4, but more about backing your teammates. Happen to be in a meeting and come across someone who criticizes your teammate's work? (especially if it's part of a project you're also working on) Have your teammate's back. Deflect the negativity.

7. Be responsive. Nothing is more frustrating than people who are non-responsive. I've worked with directors and executives who respond to emails in minutes (without any nudging from their admins) and of course one can only imagine how busy they are. Learn how to respond to emails and meeting invites in a timely manner. No one is THAT busy to the point that they can't even respond to colleagues. Don't be inaccessible.

8. Don't be afraid to have an opinion. Having a game face gets old after awhile. It's ok to stand for something and be wrong. It's worse to always come off as wishy-washy and not take a stance on something. People will respect you more for the former.