Incivility costs the American economy billions of dollars annually and has been linked with decreased job performance and satisfaction, diminished health and well-being, and turnover. In their January 2013 Harvard Business Review article, "The Price of Incivility", authors Christine Porath and Christine Pearson documented the cost of bad behavior and its effect on employees. They offered solutions to managers and business leaders to monitor their own behavior and foster civility in their workplaces.

Through the Choose Civility initiative, workplaces can take positive stances to advance organizational integrity and increase employee satisfaction. Supportive environments, low levels of incivility, and an overall sense of workplace empowerment diminish burnout. Civility causes people to feel valued and contributes to mutual respect, effective communication, and collaboration.

Led by Howard County Library System (HCLS), Choose Civility began in 2007 and quickly grew to 125 Alliance Partners comprising government, nonprofits, and businesses. Considered the brand of the county, Choose Civility invites everyone who lives and works in a community to choose respect, empathy, and consideration at every opportunity when interacting with others.

Choose Civility provides public libraries with an opportunity to:

1. incorporate Choose Civility internally to enhance internal and external customer service;
2. market their civility-related collections, classes, and events; and
3. take the lead in the development of a Choose Civility Chapter thus providing recognition as a community leader.

Choose Civility is an initiative that can be easily replicated in any community. As lead organization, HCLS is the registered headquarters for all Choose Civility Chapters, which include Washington County, Maryland; Southern Maryland (Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary's counties); Freeborn County, Minnesota; Portland, Maine; and Miami, Florida. Additional chapters are in development in states including Washington, California, Utah, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, Virginia, and New Hampshire.

HCLS incorporated Choose Civility into its strategic plan and external and internal customer service philosophies. Instructors incorporate civility lessons into existing classes for children and teens and facilitate seminars on such topics as Conflict Management in the Workplace and Reclaiming Civility in the Public Square for adults. Every October, HCLS invites the community to celebrate Choose Civility Week through a Choose Civility poster contest and civility-related events. The centerpiece of Choose Civility Week is a symposium.

Past themes have included The Role of Civility in Democracy; Building a Responsible, Bully-Free Community; and OMG to AARP: Bridging the Multigenerational Divide. Since 2010, the school system has incorporated its annual Youth Empowerment Summit into the symposium, bringing middle school students (representing each school) together for a morning of leadership exercises and breakout sessions. In the evening, students, parents, teachers, and members of the larger community attend a session that features a panel of nationally recognized scholars and experts to explore the symposium topic.

The 2014 theme will focus on civility in athletics. A Choose Civility Workplace component is in development with such partners as the Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Howard County, and the Economic Development Authority. Participating workplaces will receive public recognition and a toolkit with implementation ideas.

HCLS created a Choose Civility car magnet, which became so popular that it was challenging to keep up with demand. A symbol of the initiative's popularity and success, the magnet quickly became ubiquitous in the county and inspired a number of imitations and spoofs (e.g., Choose Cycling, Choose Love, Choose Insanity). To date, more than 70,000 car magnets have been distributed and spotted locally, regionally, nationally—and even internationally. The magnets also garnered interest from the media, resulting in articles in The Washington Post, the Smithsonian, The Wall Street Journal, and The Times of London, interviews on NPR and local television stations, and inclusion in a Canadian documentary about manners.

The initiative has generated inquiries from libraries and other organizations around the country. It was the subject of a feature article in the July/August 2011 issue of Public Libraries, a program at the 2012 Public Library Association (PLA) Conference, a PLA webinar in March 2012, and a session at the 2013 ALA Conference. Libraries interested in forming a chapter are invited to download How to Become a Choose Civility Chapter from choosecivility.org.

Licensed under Creative Commons, libraries are invited to join the initiative. Benefits include a toolkit with logo and style guide and free advice from HCLS staff. Chapters focus on issues of interest to their communities and share their experiences through emails, quarterly conference calls, and GoogleGroups.