Many of my staff routinely use inappropriate language in the booth. How can I get them to clean up their act?

It's no secret that everyone swears. In fact, 0.3 percent to 0.7 percent of the average person's speech consists of curse words, based on research by Dr. Timothy Jay, the author of "Why We Curse."

The trouble is compounded by the fact that swearing at work can actually boost a staff's spirit. Profanity among co-workers relieves stress and therefore helps bind them together - including the goody-two-shoes who don't sling the expletives.
The way to approach this, then, is as a group problem. Call your entire staff together and express your concern that their vocabulary on the show floor is at
times more profane than professional. Their language at the show, you should point out, reflects on the company's image as much as their clothing, manners, and attitude do.

Once you've made your position clear, let them know that from now on there will be consequences for using inappropriate language in the booth. (You may wish to limit your edict to the booth, since it would be difficult to control bad language outside of it.) Specify what those repercussions might be - you might send offenders home, for example, or dock them some perk. After the meeting, follow
up with a written summary of the policy and the consequences for not following it. With a bit of luck, this will be enough to get your staff to swear off swearing for good.