How much of our personality do we edit out when we enter a professional space?
A movie reference gets deleted from an email. A joke gets cut from a presentation. A LinkedIn post goes through five revisions until it sounds like anyone could have written it.
All in the name of being professional.
I take professionalism seriously. Be prepared, respect people’s time, own your mistakes, deliver good work.
None of that requires sounding like a template.
I also value working with people whose personalities I get to know.
What’s Working, Where, and Why
Last year a teammate asked me for a title for a blog graphic. I read the blog and my brain went straight to “Where is Gamora? Who is Gamora? Why is Gamora?”
That one silly line gave me the structure in seconds: What’s Working, Where, and Why.
That’s what a familiar reference can do. It carries a whole idea in a few words, and it tells people a little about who you are.
Sometimes a shared film reference starts a conversation that a formal introduction couldn’t. A song, a sitcom or a terrible joke becomes a small point of connection between colleagues. Used thoughtfully, it can make feedback easier to approach and a workplace feel more welcoming.
Not every reference will land, and not every moment needs a joke. Reading the room is part of the job.
But I’d like professional spaces to leave a little more room for people to sound like themselves.