Being a Professional

I used to think that a professional was a person who was paid for doing their job because they never made mistakes. Then I noticed that many of the people I knew who were labeled professionals were far from professional in their professions. They were arrogant, incompetent, unskilled, and generally under-qualified or inexperienced.

After examining the scenario again, I realized that a professional isn't someone who never makes a mistake, but when they do, they own their mistake and fix it, before it becomes a problem. They are more worried about the success of the project and less about their perception or status.

Acknowledging the Contributions of Others

I was one day presiding in a committee meeting where we were planning a major event. I made a suggestion that I had been considering but was shot down by another person who noted the flaws in my thinking and proposed better alternatives. I immediately realized the error of my thinking and enthusiastically embraced the revisions. We hammered out the details and made the required assignments.
Trying to be a good leader, I closed the meeting by thanking the person who fixed my idea, giving them credit for their initiative. They countered insisting that the better plan was my idea. I refuted this, replying that it was their idea, not mine. The entire committee then insisted that the idea was mine alone and that they all supported it.

I was baffled. I knew that It wasn’t my idea originally but no one would believe me. I just didn't understand. After considerable thought, I realized that because I had enthusiastically embraced the right approach, not insisting on my own obsolete idea, the entire committee only remembered the best solution and the right thing happened.

Communicating Effectively

We have all lived through harrowing experiences where one or more parties failed to communicate their feelings or intentions sufficiently, causing the entire project to fail or be placed in jeopardy. This happens for a variety of reasons.

First - People are afraid to express their opinions.

This can occur because of overbearing personalities, fear of ridicule, fear of harassment, fear of rejection, fear of failure, or even fear of success. Regardless of the impetus, fear of communicating prevented success.

We can overcome this fear by providing safe environments for ideas to be expressed, thanking people for input, and explaining why an unsuccessful suggestion will not work in this instance only, leaving open the possibility for other suggestions in the future.

Second - We fail to use the technology available to us.

Fifty years ago I read a small book on management. I have long since forgotten the title and the author, but one very important principle did remain with me. The author was discussing one of the keys to successfully get things done, and his suggestion was, "Always use the Postman".

I thought at the time is was a little weird to rely on the mailman to do your work until he explained. So often when we need to deliver information to someone else, we write down the information and then vow to deliver it when we are at their office tomorrow because it is important and urgent. Invariably, when we make the visit, we leave the letter on our desk and it goes days or weeks unaddressed, collapsing under an ever growing pile of other pressing matters.

His recommendation was, "Always use the Postman". Put it in an envelope with a stamp and drop it in the "Out Mail" in your office. Then the postman will be sure to deliver it within a couple of days, because they pride themselves on being reliable.

This was in the 1960's when snail-mail was the only means of delivering the written word. Today, we have email, text, fax, voice to text, text to voice, and a host of other electronic media and platforms that will deliver our communication to anyone around the world in seconds.

We can create and send them from a computer, a tablet, a phone, and even a wrist watch. It is so easy and quick, and responses can be just as fast.

Third - We fail to acknowledge communication.

Too often emails and texts are not acknowledged leaving the sender wondering if the communication was received, if it was understood, or what follow-up is expected. Failing to reply also may leave the sender with the feeling that they are not important enough for a response, which is usually not the case at all. This is often referred to as "Closing the Loop".

Even though we are all busy, there are several things that make it easier for us to respond. Many email programs have autoresponder settings that tell the sender the email was received and often that it was opened and read. Set this up once and it will always happen.

Texts and emails can be answered with a simple K, OK. Each are only a few keystrokes and they acknowledge your interest. Longer responses can quickly be passed to an assistant to provide a more detailed answer to the questions asked.

You can also ask that your assistants be copied on all communication. This does 2 important services for you. First, the assistant can answer questions that fall within their stewardship, saving you the time to do so. You are copied on their answers so you remain in the loop. Second, they can be your reminder that a response or action is needed from you, circumventing our self-destruction by procrastination or from simply being overworked.

Finally - We abbreviate, use too many pronouns and acronyms, or respond in incomplete sentences.
It is always important to understand our audience. We all know that different verbiage must be used in interrogatories and motions, than in a letter to a client outlining the very same steps or procedures. Being aware of who we are speaking to and their limitations or similarities, will help us to communicate more effectively the first time, saving us from second or third follow-up responses.

All of these suggestions work just as well with our spouses and children as they do at work.

Let’s all be more professional in our approach to our job, our families, and our lives.