How do you define professional?

...borrowed from Nathan Tutas

How do you define professional? Is it what title you have behind your name? Is it what company you work for? Is it how your email address comes across? Is it what you drive? How about what you wear? Or is it a combination of those things?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, I hate to tell you this, but you're wrong. Big time, dead wrong! Professionalism is an action. It's a way of doing business and doing it properly. It's about doing the things that will create last ing success in any walk of life.

No matter how well you are dressed, if you don't answer your emails in a timely manner, the client will not think of you as a professional. If you don't return phone calls for days on end...your beautiful BMW won't mean anything to the potential clients you lost. Like I said, professionalism is in how you act.

Do you treat your clients respectfully and show up on time to appointments. I'm sure you think your time is money. Well guess what, your clients think their time is money. Be on time.

I'd bet a million dol lars I could sell real estate in shorts and flip flops. I don't, but I could. Although I have the added bonus of being in Central Florida, so I wouldn't exactly look out of place. But you get my point. I can show up driving and wearing any thing I want and still do my job well.

I will have answered their call or email, I'll show up on time, I'll be prepared, I'll be well educated about the issues that might come up during our meeting, and I'll be sincere when I give them the best advice I can. That is professionalism and that is the standard you should be measuring yourself against. Another one of Nate's bright ideas.....