In the process of striving to set myself apart from the next professional and create my own unique professional personality, I have come across a myriad of things I could consider doing in that regard.

Asking oneself questions as to why they do what they do is a good step towards self-actualization. From there, you build a value set that appeals to your very existence in the world.

In the corporate world, professionals deliver their service in unique ways despite belonging to the same profession. My proposition is that the differences arise from personality, ambition and career agenda, among other things.

I recall a particular individual whose “extra mile” approach, I found admirable. An accountant by profession, he was commercially oriented and able to articulate his reporting by connecting the figures and accounting standards with each aspect of the business. Consequently, he was often assigned to present overviews of the business to key stakeholders on behalf of the company.

Whenever I sought his input or guidance, he would explain it in a comprehensive manner such that I was also inspired to break down my legal jargon for him! He was accommodating and when you got a firm “no” from him, you were assured that it was from a place of construction.

Later, and much to my delight, he informed me that he was pursuing a law degree, so that he could complement the qualifications that he had with legal perspectives beyond those he was taught as an accountant. I found this to be a very carefully calculated and progressive professional move.

I realized that my colleague was deliberate about going the extra mile in providing his service to the company and had set himself distinctly apart from the accountant next door. I registered that in my mind and though it took me a couple more years to take that approach, I finally did!

I continue to endeavour to explore opportunities that will increase the quality of the services that I offer, with the hope that I achieve the desired effect.

My point here is that for you to go the extra mile in your duty, there must be a personal motivation that inspires you to work that way. If you are poised for uniqueness and success, you might want to go that extra mile…

Thank you.