Being professional is much more than appearance and the way we speak. It’s about the attitude we carry and how we hold ourselves whether we are in large meeting space or 1 on 1 meeting.

When one says they are “professional” what does that really mean? When I was in college I was part of the University Choir at Azusa Pacific. Whether it was a rehearsal or a performance there was an expectation that you wore a tie and and dressed as if you were attending church. I did not like it much then but I understood the rational. It really had nothing to do with the clothes but it had more to do with the attitude.

Today you will hardly catch me In a tie and surprisingly jeans and a nice shirt seem have become acceptable for most settings but the requirement to be professional is still something I work on daily. Being professional, as I said before has little to do with clothes but with attitude and how you hold yourself. How do you talk about others in your office? Do you gossip? Are you overly critical of your boss? Do you recognize others above yourself? These things may not seem associated to being “professional” but I think these activities can help us gage how professional we really are.