5 Ways to Step Up your Level of Effectiveness & Professionalism

Protocols *Precision *Packaging  *Presentation *Possibilities 

PROTOCOLS - Protocol refers to the orderly arrangement of things. In whatever you are engaged in, there is a step by step process for how things are to be done to achieve the best results. In cooking a good meal for example, there is a protocol to follow. There is a time to put the fish, beef or whatever animal you are using and there is a time to put every other ingredient. You don't expect to just put all the ingredients into the pot and leave it for ten minutes or so and expect the meal to be ready and taste good. Apart from the right timing, there are also quantities of each ingredient that are adequate for the quantity and quality of the meal you are cooking. All of these things are the protocols you are to observe if you want to cook a good meal. Do you get the point? In the same way, the wrong arrangement of your words or actions can completely alter the outcome of what you are trying to say or do. One of the reasons professionals succeed is because of the protocols they know and follow in the things that they do. Success is predictable and one of the things that makes success predictable is knowing the right protocol or orderly arrangement of things or the right process to follow in what you are engaged in. Adequate preparation is one of the protocols that professionals engage in. They employ a lot of foresight and excellence into their preparations too.  

PRECISION - Can you remember how it was to rewind or forward an audio or video cassette many years ago? Or did you ever use a pen to rewind or fast forward an audio cassette? How easy or fast was it? Now compare that with how in a few seconds you can simply select the track you want on an audio or video cd player right now. That is one example of how important precision is in whatever you are doing. Nobody has time to waste and nobody likes someone who uses ten words to say what could have been said with just three words. The more precise you are the more effective you will be. Professionals know how to go straight to the point. They can easily detect what is wrong and also come up with solutions in the quickest possible time. What makes a cutting device sharp is how precise its edge is. So learn how to be more precise and you will increase your professionalism and effectiveness exponentially. Listen very well, attend to your customers swiftly and deliver your products and services faster than others do. I remember a young man who opened a laundry business in Sapele and no matter the quantity of your clothes he received, in two days all your clothes would be ready. I loved this and I personally told others about his business because it was exceptional. Then I went to Lagos in 2012 and at the E-Centre where Ozone Cinemas is, I saw a laundry mart that had more than ten washing machines and driers and you could wait and get your clothes in an hour time and at a very affordable price. They even had about three iPads on a table that customers could use to surf the Internet for free while they waited for their clothes. I was blown away. I believe you get the point so I would just go to the next one right away.

PACKAGING - This refers to the physical and external form that you, your product and your services have. The more excellent your packaging is, the better you will be perceived and accepted. I heard recently that the poor are only concerned about the quantity of their food, the rich are concerned about the quality of their food, while the extremely rich are more concerned about the very excellent way their food is presented. There are many products and services that are highly priced and patronized simply because of how they are packaged. If for example, I offer you a sachet of water and a bottle of water, which will you prefer to take and why? It may be the same quantity of water but by simply making the packaging more excellent, that same water in the bottle can sell for more than ten times the price of the water in the sachet. Your content is very important but your packaging will enhance your preference and acceptance above others who have the same content you have. Like I hinted earlier, package your products and services well, but also package yourself very well. Look so good that people want to listen to what you have to say or offer. The first thing you actually sell in whatever you sell is yourself. Look excellent and professional for your profession, career or trade.

PRESENTATION - This specifically refers to what you communicate or articulate about yourself, your product or your services. Packaging is important, but presentation is how you ensure that the right message about your product or service is what your customers receive. What is the real story about what you have to offer? Why should anybody patronize you and what you have to offer? There may be certain things about your product or service that may not be immediately obvious despite how well packaged it is. Your presentation is what makes you inform your customers about this. This is why organisations spend so much on marketing and advertising campaigns. The way you and what you have to offer are presented, can greatly affect how it is accepted and patronized. You must know the right words to use in communicating about yourself, your product and your services and you must know the best way to use those words. Your presentation must be excellent, inspiring and convincing while being honest and truthful also. A good brand is an identity that reflects your true personality. Good branding is actually about the experience people have from doing business with you. So say what you know you can deliver and if anything, exceed your customers expectation when they eventually patronize you and they will become self employed marketers for you. 

POSSIBILITIES - To me, this is about the most important out of all of them. Professionals are known for their results. They make things happen. This should be your greatest desire and focus. Let your customers be maximally satisfied. Do not be too quick to say that something cannot be done. Learn to think outside the box and learn to go the extra mile to deliver results. Many times, our challenge is not with lack of resources but our low level of resourcefulness and creativity. Resourcefulness is about your ability to identify, acquire and utilise resources in the best possible way. You must be very creative to be really effective and professional. Desire to exceed your customers' expectations. Be someone that is known for your ability to deliver and make things happen somehow, some way. In 2010 I was in a pastors seminar in Benin City. It was organized by a pastor from Lagos and it was to precede a main event the following day. Before the pastor came to share with us, there was some delay in starting and I noticed a group of people around the sound system trying to fix it. After a while, a pastor came up and pleaded that if anyone of us in the crowd knew how to fix the sound system, we should please come up and assist them. Do you know what I did? I stepped out of the hall immediately and I put a call across to a friend of mine called Uzor Nwabudike and I explained the state of things to him. In a few minutes he was around and the first thing he did was to tell everybody to get out of the sound system area. In less than ten minutes, the sound system was up and running and it did not give any hitch till the program ended. Do you know what the name of my friend's company is? Audio Fix. I think his company name is just perfect because that is the experience you always get when you patronize him. He is a professional in what he does and I can vouch for him any day and any time. Professionals don't give excuses. Excuses are good reasons for bad results; while tips and principles are the reasons why you were able to succeed despite the challenges that you faced. 

As a wrap up, I would like you to deliberately ask yourself which of these areas you are doing well in and which of these areas you need to improve in. I want you to also deliberately strategize on how you can actually make that improvement. Be willing to upgrade your mind, make sacrifices and get help from others where you need to improve. Any comments or thoughts you have on this piece would also be greatly appreciated. 

 

I believe in you and I wish you all the very best.

Ifoghale Efeturi,

iefeturi@gmail.com