Professionalism

[Flavus Aquila]

What is professionalism?

What is it's opposite (unprofessionalism)?

Is it a good/bad/neutral thing?



Whenever I have had a bad work-place or shopping/commercial experience, it almost always seems fitting to describe the problem as un-professional behaviour. Un-polite, or dishonest doesn't really fit in these contexts. I want to find a good working definition/description of professional behaviour/professionalism.

 

[Satya]

Professionalism is doing your job with the same level of quality and courtesy that you would expect from someone else if you were paying them to do the job.

In a sense professionalism is placing yourself in the position of the employer and doing a job that will best reflect upon them without unnecessarily increasing the difficulty of their work.

There is also a demeanor to professionalism. This changes significantly depending upon the profession. For example, a professional retail worker is typically suppose to treat the customer as if they are always right whereas the professional social worker has an ethical obligation to confront social injustice and threats to social welfare.

The best way to define a professional demeanor is probably an attitude which best satisfies the goals of the profession.

 

[Jonathan]

My experience with professionalism has mostly been negative. I don't like the expectations that come with being professional. Maybe it's because I've been around a lot of people who point out how 'unprofesional' people they encounter are without any sympathy/empathy whatsoever. I prefer casual attitudes where the personal life of the other person is being taken into consideration, not just being professional and businesslike to fit certain standards and beinf impersonal.
I'm not saying it's a bad thing, as I appreciate professionalism as an efficient way to keep things running smoothly; it's just that being professional lacks the personal consideration that I value more strongly.