According to Wikipedia, professional ethics encompass the personal, organisational and corporate standards of behaviour expected of professionals. Neeraj Deshpande illustrates five professional ethics which can help us at the workplace for a lifetime.
It is one month into the New Year and most of us are doing our best at living upto our resolutions for 2015. Well, I don’t know if resolutions are meant to be followed or not, but I want you to follow the definition of professional ethics mentioned above, starting this year, till the last day of your life.
Below are the five most important ethics one need to start following this year:
Responsibility: Responsibility is not something that is forced upon you. It is the mind-set that makes you one with the job that is assigned to you. To be responsible, you have to believe that your organisation’s success or failure is yours as well. You pledge your allegiance to a result irrespective of other factors before you even take action.
Self – Discipline: Many professionals claim themselves to be responsible but complain of not achieving the desired success. The problem lies not in the ‘will’, but the ‘way’ you are executing it. You have to have a strong self-discipline quotient. In an organisation, you are expected to do many things at the same time, but the only way to beat the rut and frustration is to be focussed and disciplined about your efforts.
Accountability: To be ready to answer for the results of your choices, actions, and behaviour is what makes you accountable. When you do that, you stop blaming other factors and people. You stop making lame excuses. Instead, you are ready to face the problem and learn from it. Whether your effort delivers result or not, be accountable for it. This will help you rectify the mistakes and grow professionally.
Respect for Colleagues: Organisation is an amalgamation of people. Each has their own personality and way of working which may or may not suit your style. However, an organisation can only work, if every member of it is in sync with each other. You have to have patience to understand others and be respectful.
Be Honest: Everyone messes up sometimes, but you need to be honest about it. There are situations where professionals try to hide their mistakes and that snowballs into a major issue which sometimes ends up with them losing their job. Avoid going that path; be open and honest about your work and see the difference.
Remember these values are not just for you to follow in office. You need to implement them in your personal life as well, to see success in both your work and personal life.
The author is head marketing, PR and team building at Work Better.
