Professionalism

Making a Visible Commitment to Excellence

by Phil Hanson

When you make professionalism your highest priority people notice, because you're making a visible commitment to excellence. Professionalism is an attitude shared by winners in every conceivable kind of occupation or endeavor. It's the mindset of people who are driven to excel.

Shared traits! What characteristics do professionals have in common? Many, it seems. While this is not a definitive list, intelligence, talent, motivation, enthusiasm, focus, determination, dedication, commitment and dependability are traits most professionals possess in common. There are others, to be sure, but these are the most important.

A combination of factors! Professionals may have lots of talent, but talent alone is not what brings them success or makes them professional. Rather, it's a combination of factors working in concert that turn professional-minded people into successful professionals.

No shortcuts! People who practice professional ethics know there are no shortcuts to success. They know that things which lead to success often take place behind the scenes, and that there are no overnight successes—overnight success stories often take years in the telling. All professionals pay their dues. It's the price of success.

Knowledgeable beginnings! If professionals seem to know more than their non-professional counterparts, it's not because they're inherently smarter but because they understand that knowledge is the framework upon which high achievement is built. They spare no effort to acquire knowledge and, once they have it, to refine it and implement it to their best advantage.

Hard work! Be prepared for lots of it. Hard work is the only way to attain professional status, as every successful professional knows. There is no easy way. It takes hard work to get to the top and more hard work to stay at the top. That's the reality of the professional. If you would be a professional, make it your reality, too.

In pursuit of perfection! Isn't that what professionalism is all about, pursuing perfection? Isn't it why we strive, relentlessly, to be the best? Isn't it why we continually refine our knowledge and our skills, that we can gain prominence and enhance our reputations and thus increase our value in the marketplace?

In their quest for perfection, professionals know how important it is to pay attention to details. No detail is too small or so insignificant that it escapes a professional's attention. It's the little things, often lots of little things, which add up to superior levels of service and performance.

When serious Internet professionals establish reputations for quality, value, performance, accuracy, honesty and integrity, they ascend to the top income brackets of their chosen fields because their products or services are in high demand.