Transparency is vital. But some gestures and words are better left unexpressed. Consider the case of Johnny Manziel, aka "Johnny Football."
During a primetime broadcast a while back, the rookie Cleveland Brown quarterback lost his cool. After persistent taunts from his opponents, he flipped his middle finger at them, a gesture beamed to millions of viewers at home.
Although Manziel is well known for bad-boy behavior, his coach was not pleased. "It does not sit well," Mike Pettine told the Boston Globe. "It's disappointing, because what we talk about is being poised and being focused." Shortly after the incident, Pettine named Brian Hoyer his starting quarterback.
Not only is obscenity in its many forms increasingly common in professional sports, it's becoming common in the workplace. But financial advisors should take a stand against it. By committing themselves to respectful discourse, they will become a magnet for prospects (and colleagues) who admire professionalism, not only in knowledge, but also in conduct.
Unfortunately, many business and political leaders are traveling the low road. T-Mobile CEO John Legere used the f-word to describe his competitors at AT&T and Verizon. Former Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz threatened her team with being dropkicked to "f—–g Mars" if they leaked information to the press. Even Donald Trump, a potential Republican Party presidential candidate, went on a profanity-laced tirade during a Las Vegas political speech. And let's not forget President Obama's threat to kick some you-know-what over the BP oil spill.
