How to be a true professional at work place?
Essential principles.
‘Professionalism: it is NOT the job you DO. It’s how you DO the job.’ –Anonymous.
You do things that please you when you are at home and no one questions you. Why is it so? It is your domain and you can do whatever catches your fancy. But can you behave at your will in your work place? No, you cannot. You have to follow certain rules and regulations of the company you are working for. If you give in to your emotions you become unprofessional in your work and you will never be able to climb up the ladder of success.
Every company has its own rules and regulations and you cannot change it. You should follow it and it is when rules are followed with sincerity can any business thrive. Professionalism is the core to success in work place and diplomacy is the essence of professionalism. When you are professional in your attitude, it gives you a cutting edge above others and you come into the good books of the management with effortless ease.
What are the requirements of true professionalism?
- You are punctual.
- You follow the rules and regulations.
- You do your work with dedication.
- You are competent
- You do not indulge in office politics, or back bite about anyone.
- You are well groomed.
- You sport a friendly smile.
- You are ready to help.
- You do not use profanities and you voice is firm and measured.
- You accept your mistakes and do not put the blame on others.
Can you say you possess all these qualities? If you say ‘yes’ you can hold up your head with pride and call yourself a true professional. But if you say ‘no’ it is time you change and adopt these behavioral needs and become a valuable contributor to your company
How do you get along with all your colleagues? You might have a colleague with whom you are not friendly. This is a tough situation which can make your time at workplace oppressive and tense. You nerves become frayed at the hostile attitude of your colleague and you want to retaliate with vengeance. That would be unprofessional on your part if you do so. What should you do in such situation to make yourself look professional? You should be courteous to that person and maintain a respectful distance from him.
Have you done a mistake? What do you do? Do you try to hide behind the facade of ‘my bad time’? Total unprofessional attitude on your part! When you own up your mistakes, you come out as a truly professional person. It is after all human to make mistakes and there is nothing wrong in admitting the faults done by you.
Are you so meek voiced that you cannot talk out about the true problems in your projects or work? You will be trampled by your colleagues if you cower and shiver in undue submissiveness. You should be bold enough to speak out your thoughts. You should not shout or yell, but talk in a firm tone and put forth your thoughts with precision and accuracy.
How do you react when you get negative criticisms? Do you get cowed down and feel low about you? It is a very wrong way of looking at criticisms! Criticisms are actually 'prodding elements' to make you do your work differently and efficiently. You should realize that it is when your mistakes are pointed out to you will you be able to understand where you went wrong. So take it in the true spirit and like a true professional rectify the mistakes and make your work look more proficient and worthwhile.
Are you too finicky about your timings? Of course you have your own family to look after and you should have a time schedule so that you can lead your own life. You cannot stay in your workplace day and night, can you? But when there is an emergency in your work place, you should be flexible in your timings and give your work your priority. That is true professionalism to you!!!
Email has become part and parcel of work. You need to email to other companies regarding your company’s work and other business commitments. So you should know how to write a good and professional sounding mail to them. The tone of your email must be formal, pleasant and to the point. Do not go blah\ blah and do not let grammatical faults to appear in your email.
Do you think helping others will jeopardize your own success in your workplace? No, it won’t! When you help others you are improving your expertise and knowledge and you become highly efficient in your work. Your image as a helping colleague boosts up your image and it will come in good stead in your promotion.
You should not have negative thoughts about your boss and treat him with servility in his presence and have venomous irritation in your mind. He gives orders for the betterment of his company and he needs your help to run it professionally and lucratively. When you are sincere in your work, you get into the good books of your boss and this spells success to you.
‘If you want to change attitudes, start with a change in behavior. In other words, begin to act the part, as well as you can, of the person you would rather be, the person you most want to become. Gradually, the old, fearful person will fade away.’ – William Glasser
The changes should come from within you and when you do so you will find your attitude changing. You become more dedicated, more focused, more proficient and more assertive that you bring forth a picture of total professionalism. You will be surprised at the positive reaction you get from your colleagues and you will be pleased to see a new ‘you’ who is professional in behavior and outlook.
