We've all had our share of good jobs and bad jobs. There's likely been more bad than good otherwise we would only need to have one job our whole entire life.
I've had my share of jobs where I have been happy, miserable, needed it because it looked good on paper, needed to ditch it because it didn't, paid well, didn't pay well.... you get it. With every bad job comes a lesson, though, right? Even if the lesson is you should've listened to your gut and not took the job in the first place.
But seriously, lessons I have learned career-wise:
- Managers or supervisors will sometimes make you feel bad for wanting to discuss your worth. Don't let them. You have every right to do so. If they don't like it, they are simply intimidated by you and you probably don't want to continue to work for this type of person.
- Speaking of worth: on that note, don't let your supervisor/manager use anything other than a tangible, dollar-amount raise to reward you. Supervisors think they can get away with doing almost anything besides an actual raise to keep you around. A new, better job title being one of them, as well as other intangible things like "a bigger office", or more job responsibilities, or even gifts or other bonus packages. Those things just don't cut it. They are just a way for your supervisor to avoid having to give you a raise and it's not cool.
- Don't let a job allow you to move backwards in your career. If there are no ways for you to learn, grow as a person, or move up, you probably took a dead end job that you are way too overqualified for.
- You will have your share of difficult coworkers. In all shapes and forms. Ones that you will always, and I mean always have in every workplace:
- The older generation colleague who pretends to have some type of power over you. They think they're the unofficial "office manager". And if you do anything that they don't like (like make the coffee too strong), they will run to your supervisor and tattle like a 5 year old.
- The passive aggressive coworker who is secretly in competition with you. They probably have the same skill set and level of education as you do, so they feel they need to find sneaky ways to step on your toes.
- The gossip. The gossip seems fun at first, but after a while you realize that they likely gossip about you too.
So as a PSA, or whatever you'd like to call it, I want to put together a list of what it means to be professional. Every job that I've had, none of these things were ever articulated to me, they were just learned over time. I think it's important that people brush up on professionalism in the workplace before they start a job. Saves everyone a headache!
- Put the customer first. Make sure you are meeting their needs and don't jeopardize their confidentiality. Without these people, you don't have a job. Your income does actually depend on them, despite what you may think. I don't want to hear coworkers make fun of how "dumb" someone is or crack jokes at their personal information. This is extremely unprofessional.
- Be accurate and consistent. If you don't have an answer for someone, please don't just "guess" or pull out random data that sounds familiar in your head. Take some time and look for the real answer. And don't tell one person one thing and then another person something different. It's a small world, people talk. It doesn't help you look very credible. It's just evident that you don't know what you're talking about. Be reliable and deliver the best you possibly can. Sometimes in order to do that, it takes a little bit of time and thinking. Don't be afraid to think.
- Piggy backing off of the one above; don't be impulsive. If you are hosting or attending a meeting, don't just "wing it" with the materials you're supposed to share. If you are writing an email or leaving a voicemail, plan what you are going to say ahead of time, and make sure that it sounds professional and kind. No one should have to stop and wonder if there are sarcastic or condescending undertones in your email. Make a point to sound like you are actually being nice, it's not that hard. It may take a few seconds out of your time and a "how are you?" or a "thank you!". Heaven forbid you have to waste another breath or another sentence in your email.
- Communicate. The best type of communication is obviously face to face. If your coworkers are housed close enough to you, you shouldn't have to resort to phone or email. That's simply just lazy. And if you have something to say, don't beat around the bush. Don't be passive-aggressive. Passive-aggressiveness is the one type of behavior that I find extremely unprofessional, but some people actually think it's just them trying to be nice. Wrong, wrong, wrong. "This paperwork needs to get done today, can I just set it on your desk?"...I think that's code for "I'm gonna try to send a message to you that I am more important than you, so I'm going to volunteer you to do a tedious task!" And piggy backing off of that, if someone is doing something that bothers you, pull them aside. Meet with them about it in private and tell them how they are affecting you. If that doesn't work, meet with your supervisor and fill them in.
- Don't keep valuable information all to yourself. People get all these ideas in their head when it comes to sharing information. They start to worry that if they share valuable information or knowledge with their coworkers, they will lose job security. Hoarding information like a pack rat doesn't grant you job security, it just makes you look like an ass. Nobody likes that coworker who hides useful info from them. If you are talented and hardworking, there should be no reason you are worried about sharing tips and wisdom with coworkers.
- Be proud of what you do and who you represent. Praise the company you work for and the people you work with, but do not praise yourself. Let your work speak for itself and stay humble.
- Last but not least; appropriate attire, etiquette, body language, etc. Walk the walk and talk the talk. Look fresh and crisp, speak concisely and politely, give the impression that you are interested in the person you are talking to and are dedicated to helping them. Do not gossip, talk negatively about your job duties, and most importantly don't talk negatively about the people you work with. Nothing screams "unprofessional" more than that.
