You network with someone and they turn out to be the complete opposite of what you thought they were. Here's the example:
They brag about their past accolades, which intrigues you upon initial contact, so you give them an extra five minutes to see where the conversation may lead. When they start talking about what makes them different from other people in their field, you think that you've struck gold and found a person who understands professionalism like you do because all of the things that make them unique are all of the things that you have been seeking in another individual to work with/for. The fact that they cannot seem to take a breath in between their listings of awful past experiences with other posing professionals is thrilling because it's almost as if you've found your career twin- one who knows exactly what it is that you, too, have gone through and would never want to experience ever again. You drown out their voice for a second to think back to the beginning of your interaction, and start to rate the firmness of their grip of their handshake, the truthfulness that lies in their making eye contact with you at all times, the accuracy for the pattern of pleats in her skirt or the accuracy of the tailor's work on the pants of his suit, the brilliance in their dental cleaning, and the way in which their body language screamed "I am Harvey Spector" or "I am Jessica Pearson" in a sway that only a smooth, New York lawyer can pull off on his best day at work. By the time you've zoned back into the conversation, you're being handed a business card and invited to experience their services. You wait for the moment you need them the most - just so that they know that you aren't desperate.
The day finally comes... and they are late, unkempt, unclean - yes, their office/work space is untidy, unacceptable, and above all... (need I say it?)... unprofessional. They give excuses for everything: their alarm clock was either set to the wrong time or didn't go off at all, their pet needed attention for the first time in the 12 years since they adopted it, their hair situation is a result of rushing and not having been able to take a complete shower, as if to say that taking a half shower is even possible! Their breakfast was nonexistent, which left their stomach practically begging for McDonalds, Dunkin' Donuts, or some cheap, fast-food meal that would hold them over until they were finished with you, because their appetite is of the kind that eats too frequently, and medication has to be taken with food. Speaking of!... the medication has them all over the place emotionally, which is probably why they are disheveled, funky and did I mention, unprofessional?
When you are working with a professional, these things never happen. I repeat: NEVER happen. So, unless you are ready to take ownership of your own brand and have placed your business as a priority over everything, let's be careful with using the term, 'professional' because there is only one way to 'do professional.' And if you're not doing it right, don't claim to be doing it at all.
Best,
MM :)
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