The Lost Art of Professionalism

I ‘grew up’ in the corporate business world, where I sometimes had to work with either bosses or peers that I simply could not stand. But I never sat across the conference room table and sneered at my coworkers, nor did I write a company-wide memo lamenting how much my boss and/or my employer sucks. When I got to the point where I couldn’t give 100% of my loyalty to the company I worked for, I left.

I learned valuable lessons in the corporate world that I’ve carried over into the writing world.

1. Don’t bite the hand that feeds you – Part 1 – If you hate your publisher, for God’s sake quit sending them books. Don’t publicly bash them…it just makes you look bad.

2. Don’t bite the hand that feeds you – Part 2 – Readers are our bread and butter. Don’t ignore them or treat them like idiots. Don’t expect them to fawn all over you. You’re just a person. You write books. Sorry, but that doesn’t make you special.

3. Treat your peers professionally. Jealousy comes across loud and clear. If you hate another author for whatever reason (insecurity), keep it to yourself or vent it privately. Once again, if you do it publicly, it just makes you look bad.

Now I’m a HUGE advocate of free speech. But I think, as a professional, we have to draw the line somewhere. Keep your nasty, high-school comments to yourself….again, it just makes you look bad.

I’m also a big believer in Karma. I try to treat people the way I would like to be treated. So far it’s worked very well for me.