So in this episode we talk about professionalism in the workplace. We speak with CaTyra Polland, author of "Professionalism. What's That?" We discuss a range of topics from code switching to the gig economy and even National Black Author Day.

Here are some of the highlights from our conversation: We begin by talking about our own experiences with employment, where Quintell has a squeaky clean record while Michae…does not.. We explore the surprising nature of being fired and how it can impact your career trajectory. We also discuss how schools often fail to teach practical life skills that are important for success in the workplace.Michae shares his goofiest job and we learn that starting a sentence with "um" is always a problem. Quintell highlights her mastery of crafting professional emails and we delve into the etiquette of work chats.

Our guest, CaTyra Polland, shares her thoughts on code-switching, a topic that is covered in her book. We talk about the complexities of this concept and how Black people and POC often have to make adjustments in the employment world. We also discuss what professionalism looks like in a gig economy and a world with AI.CaTyra talks about her history in writing and Love For Words, her editing company. We learn that a good editor does more than criticize and she warns against the pitfalls of DIY as an author. She breaks down what a successful team for an author looks like and also talks about her creation of National Black Authors Day, which is on May 4th, 2023.

Before we wrap up, we mention that we are available to narrate books and edit podcasts. We also thank our sponsor, www.umbrellastock.com and invite listeners to pick up Ghostreaders Merch at www.thewritestuffmerch.com.Thank you for tuning in to our podcast on professionalism. We hope you learned something new and we look forward to sharing more insights with you in the future.

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