Set Your Own Standards for Professionalism

One thing the word cloud suggests is that not everyone agrees on the characteristics of professionalism. Standards for professionalism can vary based on the situation you’re in. There is some agreement about some of the most important characteristics of professionalism. The top two characteristics are: 1) being reliable, and 2) having a professional appearance.

Following that, characteristics of professionalism include: being ethical, respectful, competent in what you are being asked to do, and being a strong communicator. That’s support for why being a strong communicator is the focus of Module 1 and one of the badges for being a Digital Ambassador.

Following that, professionals are accountable for their actions and work, have integrity, are poised, and organized. From there on, there’s not much agreement, but there are some terms that may overlap. For example, being organized involves managing time. Being knowledgeable is similar to being competent.

As a team, discuss which aspects of professionalism are most important to the group in your setting. You may develop a list of expectations or norms for how Digital Ambassadors are expected to “do the job.” 

At the end of this module, each Digital Ambassador should create a Personal Code of Conduct they plan to follow when working with others. This Code of Conduct can actually be shared with others early in your relationship. You can post it to a website or print it out. Your Code of Conduct can be thought of as an agreement of how you plan to work and interact with others and what they can expect from you. These documents may also be referred to as norms.

What should your Personal Code of Conduct contain? A few characteristics you may want to include are explored next in this section.