Respeck, maan.

Normally, I don’t call people ‘Sir’.

They could be managers, GMs, or VPs – when in the same room, I usually converse by making sure they know I’m talking to them, so I don’t need to address them by any name, or it’s ‘Mr. (Surname)’. Even my own bosses, the people who hired me by calling me personally, were never ‘sir’s. I only started calling them that because everyone else seems shit scared of them and calls them that, and I don’t want the bosses to feel offended. It’s not an ego thing – just professional interaction, and not selling yourself short when it comes to self-respect.

Some time ago, I went to a different location of the company and was to meet two people. Mr. SS I’d met earlier and called him Mr.S (surname). I later learnt he was GM, and was told about his career graph. He had a natural presence and he was in absolute control in his department. He was shrewd and sharp, and though I knew he was squeezing information out of me, I respected his intelligence. This time, I called him ‘Sir’ – not because I had to or ‘shouldshow respect and subservience’, but because I respected his intelligence (at his age) and his sheer capability.

I’d never met Mr.GB before, though I’d heard his name. N told me he was one of the nicest people in the organization, but of course, I reserved my judgement. He was GM too. And I started calling him ‘sir’ almost the minute I met him. His humility shone through like a beacon. His willingness to listen, understand and co-operate was something I’d seen very rarely. He knew N, but held out his hand to me again later and asked me very softly for my name – ‘sorry, I didn’t get your name’. Then he smiled and said ‘My name is G.’ I said yes, I know. He never for one moment assumed that I should know his name because of his position.

At lunch, when I sat down and others were concentrating on their plates, Mr.GB moved stuff around to make place for me. He took out a glass for me, and even almost poured out my water for me – before I stopped him. I recovered in time from my admiration for this person, who was quite high up yet lacked any pretence or affectations regarding his designation. When I send mails, they are usually to Mr. Surname, but I was just going to mail Mr.GB, and I realized I would start with ‘Dear Sir’.

That’s what inspired this post. I just realized how humility automatically commands my respect. It’s not everyday you learn something about yourself.