Arrive in time. If you come late, you may end up working late.
When you have to choose between life and work, choose life. You can find some other work, you can't find another life.
If, for some reason, it is unavoidable to work odd hours or long hours, try to compensate for it.
Never compromise for an unreasonable deadline. If there is no other choice, at least ask for some incentives.
You work to live. Never let any one trick you to believe that it is actually otherwise.
Setup distractions occasionally. Continuous work means fatigue and inefficiency, which in turn mean longer hours, which in turn means more inefficiency, which in turn.....
Remember, you are a worker, not a slave. If someone thinks otherwise, tell them.
Don't miss a chance to take holiday/vacation. Don't pile up your earned leave and carry them on. Take a break when you can. Have fun when you can.But avoid abseteeism.
Money is what is important. Not the work itself. But don't ignore the later or former will never come to you.
Retire by 35. Make enough money by then(how?! ;-) ). Use rest of your life to fulfil your dreams and do undone things that you always wanted to do.
And to make sure your career is not ruined by these ethics, following list is equally important. I would not fit them with the above because these are not the most pleasent things but definitely necessary.
Work Smart, not hard. I know this is no indigenous quote, but this is necessary to ensure that you don't work late hours
Don't waste time in working hours simply fooling around. Be a good worker and concentrate properly when you are working. It does not help to do something with half mind. It only means undone work and prolonged working hours
Don't pick up a fight with your boss. It never helps. If you have really major problems, leave the organization.
Don't cheat with your work. Try to put your best. Half cooked work will always come back to you later in the form of problems. It is better to prevent it than repenting later(This is from my experiences in the past ;-) ).
Escalate problems quickly instead of trying heroics to resolve it. That can only mean longer hours of work.
If you find spare time, don't while away if you can. Take some initiatives in the organization. Otherwise, you will never grow, and will have a bad career. And that means you don't make much money, and that means you don't retire early. But ensure that your initiatives do not mean that they take up all your personal time and make you spend long hours.
If you know that your organization is drowning, forget all the ethics and pitch in for 24/7 help. Coz, otherwise, you are without a job. But never let your manager trick you into believing that your org is drowning. If such is for real, you will know it without any doubts.
I feel the whole set of points are in balance and are favorable to both organization and the worker and should be able to keep both sides happy. Unless one of the either tries to be unreasonable. Whadduyusay?
