When In Doubt....Clarify Your Meaing
So having a frank and honest conversation with my dad last night and with my wife again this morning, it was pointed out to me that my BLOG post the other day might have possibly offended some of my readers. I thought that I was hopefully clear in communicating throughout the post that this was not my intention nor my desire to diminish the accomplishments of any professional in any industry. I stand by my comments but realize the main point of what I was trying to say might be have been said clearer. So let me give it another shot.
Titles or impressive letters following one's name don't make the person...the person makes the person. My intent was to communicate that titles, certifications and professional achievement though important and absolutely something you should be proud of, very well may be intimidating to new people when you first meet them. The real question is, does your title or letters after your name tell the average person something important about you that they, as a common person can immediately recognize and understand, or does it have the opposite affect? Does the average person possibly get intimidated or annoyed with the fact they don't know what a PhD does, let alone how to connect and communicate with him or her so they just don't.
Simply stated....I would hate to see someone great miss out on meeting someone else who is great simply because a title or professional certification presents a connection barrier.
Maybe I am wrong, maybe the impression I get is not every one's and that's okay too. I simply think it might be worth examining on some level.
So now that I have opened this can of worms what do I do to get them back in. Well if you sport one of these acronyms, signifying letters or educational accomplishments on your card, ask yourself if you think the average person could identify with their meaning. Don't stop there..get the opinion of family, friends and some complete strangers along the way. See what other's have to say about their first impression.
If this unscientific yet powerfully insightful survey yields mixed results consider getting two cards printed up. One to use when you are out in the general business public that states what you do in simpler language and one that you can use in environments where those who attend will get and understand what your higher level of achievement means and signifies.
In closing, I just want to say I apologize if my comments offended any of you in any way. But the goal with my BLOG is, and will always be, to get my readers to look at things from hopefully a different and sometimes controversial perspective. But please trust that I would never do anything that is intentionally mean-spirited or diminishes you my faithful readers in any way. And if Thursday's post did...please accept my apology!
Ripple On and Enjoy Your Sunday!!!
Steve
Titles or impressive letters following one's name don't make the person...the person makes the person. My intent was to communicate that titles, certifications and professional achievement though important and absolutely something you should be proud of, very well may be intimidating to new people when you first meet them. The real question is, does your title or letters after your name tell the average person something important about you that they, as a common person can immediately recognize and understand, or does it have the opposite affect? Does the average person possibly get intimidated or annoyed with the fact they don't know what a PhD does, let alone how to connect and communicate with him or her so they just don't.
Simply stated....I would hate to see someone great miss out on meeting someone else who is great simply because a title or professional certification presents a connection barrier.
Maybe I am wrong, maybe the impression I get is not every one's and that's okay too. I simply think it might be worth examining on some level.
So now that I have opened this can of worms what do I do to get them back in. Well if you sport one of these acronyms, signifying letters or educational accomplishments on your card, ask yourself if you think the average person could identify with their meaning. Don't stop there..get the opinion of family, friends and some complete strangers along the way. See what other's have to say about their first impression.
If this unscientific yet powerfully insightful survey yields mixed results consider getting two cards printed up. One to use when you are out in the general business public that states what you do in simpler language and one that you can use in environments where those who attend will get and understand what your higher level of achievement means and signifies.
In closing, I just want to say I apologize if my comments offended any of you in any way. But the goal with my BLOG is, and will always be, to get my readers to look at things from hopefully a different and sometimes controversial perspective. But please trust that I would never do anything that is intentionally mean-spirited or diminishes you my faithful readers in any way. And if Thursday's post did...please accept my apology!
Ripple On and Enjoy Your Sunday!!!
Steve
posted by Steve Harper at 8:57 AM
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