Professional "Attitudes" We Are OVER in 2022

If we do a quick Google search for "professional attitudes", we'll find a colorful assortment of options. I'll skip listing those because that is not what this article is about. There are many that have been born along side of the online business boom that occured over the last few years. Some of them are well intended (I'm just being nice), and some of them are just an authority flex and a showcase of leadership deficits. Not everyone who starts a business understands how to run one.

Feel free to comment or DM me if I missed any. I'd love to add them to the collection. It's time to shed the facades and put a stop to behaviors that result in more traumas than teamwork. Let's jump in:

• "The 4 Hour Work Week Whiner"- Now that you "own" your own "business, and had the opportunity to delegate some tasks, you got inspired by the concept of the 4 Hour Work Week and assumed this instantly applied to... only you. Starting a business was supposed to mean freedom, so this means that your #newyearnewyou looks more like socially proving your status and #freedom, than focusing on the work that needs to be done or how your team needs to be supported. Often, as a result, employees and contractors are left feeling confused by tasks, lack of operations & feedback, and unsure what the actual objectives are (other than to make sure they don't bother you when you are NOT "supposed" to be working). Hired help burns out quickly as more responsibility continues to pile up on them so that you can "live your life". Posting stories about your #Team doesn't mean you actually have one. Still, in 2022, there is no "i" in TEAM.

• "Toxically Passive & Positive"- This one is so hard to battle. Who wants to be named the "Negative Nancy" or accused of bringing the whole team down? Unfortunately, sometimes someone has to expose the truth if the person responsible is unwilling. What deems someone as "toxically" positive or passive is when they chronically overlook fires, skipping by solutions, and have more of a problem with the person who is sounding the alarm, than the actual threat or problem. Focusing ONLY on the positive, can give room for problems to grow unnecessarily. Ignoring them won't make them go away, but it will chase away the help you desperately need.

• "Expert & Gurus with Borrowed Experiences" - Ever been in a social audio room and listen to experts on stage? Ever heard the same story twice by more than 3 different people? I have! Welcome to the world of blind edification, self made overnight millionaires and highly familiar strangers. Many of them have a few things in common, a convincing story you can't confirm elsewhere, and a tribe of people that believe it. These will often land them on big stages, guest appearances, and as long as they can parrot an actual expert, they can stay in the game. One thing they don't borrow is your money, and with a booming economy of course creators, you can find an "Expert" just about anywhere with a landing page of services, consults, classes and courses... and of course, most of them hold high ticket pricing structures. We are Completely SICK OF IT.

• "By Any Means Necessary"- When you started your business venture, we were excited for you, even cheered for you, and now we don't even know who you are anymore. This happens when the "prize" serves the EGO more than a healthy purpose. Upgrading yourself and your life is one thing, but stepping on others is a boundary that many are not willing to cross, but that count is dwindling. The cost of fame has ebbed and flowed and when the market is right, it has people willing to shift morals and values to see their names "in lights".

• "Trauma Reformed"- We get it, you have a past, and it includes trauma, but the concepts of "trauma informed" inclusive culture has become twisted into a cesspool for people evading accountability BECAUSE of non-work related trauma. Now, before you come for me, hear me out. I'm not excluding the importance of being "Trauma Informed", but that is not what this is. Some people are using this as a reason to professionally opt out of responsibilities when they've dropped the ball or get caught in the midst of unethical practices. I once sat in a meeting, next to a colleague who promised a client something she knew we could never deliver. I learned of this after the fact. Instead of coming clean and being honest about it, she wanted to blame me for not delivering on that promise. Then when the client became angry, she froze, leaving me to be the "professional" while she remained in a frozen state due to her "anxiety". This wasn't the only time, and I quickly pulled the plug and refused to work with her again. This wasn't an issue of her having crippling anxiety that prevented her from functioning, she was essentially her own worst nightmare, highly manipulative and always the victim.

• "The Hustle Hero"- It's cool if you want to work from 4am- 2am, but it shouldn't be expected of others. Respecting personal time & days off should be non-negotiable. This type of professional usually sews seeds of judgement through short sided comments about how much they do vs others and their persistent contact during these hours feels as if they expect you to conform. Personal time is valuable, time with family is valuable, and RESTING is necessary. Don't let a "Hustle Hero" try to convince you otherwise.

We all have healing to do, but we can't improve if we are weaponizing our wounds, injuring others for personal gain, and bleeding on people that didn't hurt you. It helps no one and serves nothing if we can't be honest with each other, and most of all, ourselves.

I'm far from a mental health expert, but I don't need to be one to speak out. These type of behaviors backed by "professional" status needs to go. We need to abandon false images of success, dismantle passive aggressive "professionalism" and normalize a healthy communication and accountability in how we do business. While it's true you can "lead from behind", the position some people are put in at the hands of poor leaders and professional practices is often traumatizing in itself.

I'm looking forward to audio rooms on The Linkedin platform and if you know someone who speaks on these particular issues, please tag them so I can follow.