I’ve come to believe that a professional is someone who chooses a particular job and sticks to it, getting better and enjoying it year after year. Doesn’t matter if they’re an electrician, manager, or dishwasher – fact is, we’ve all known people in all of those and many other professions who were the bedrock of their departments and companies.
· Some were well-schooled, others learned on the job (or on the street), but all were the kinds of people who came to work every day – good of bad, because that’s what professionals do.
Our chief mechanic was a burly and bearded fellow who had been there forever, knew where all the fittings, wires, transformers, pumps, and more were (even behind the walls), and no matter what the problem, figured it out. And he thought part of his job was to train others to do that too. While I was busy trying to design appropriate interview questions for our hiring processes, he had a grocery cart filled with tools and just asked his applicants what each was for, how they were used, and if they had better methods than those. Simple, straight-forward, and to the point. I don’t know if he worked every day, but I do know that he was there whenever needed – on good days and bad. Knowledge, experience, dedication, and professionalism. That’s what you want in and from your peeps every day, good or bad. Thank the professionals around you today.
Norman Mailer (1923 – 2007): American novelist, journalist, playwright, and film maker who had 11 best-selling books, at least one in each of the seven decades after World War II.
No comments:
Post a Comment