Polished Professional Image Blog

A recent blog on the Wall Street Journal talks about women star analysts on Wall Street. It seems that, unlike their male counterparts, they are able to retain their star status even after they switch firms. Harvard Business School professor, “Boris Groysberg, whose work focuses on organizational behavior and management, spotted the performance gender gap while studying earlier research into the work of star stock analysts”, according to the blog. He attributes this disparity (in our favor, for a change!) on women’s tendency to build relationship outside of their companies. They are building relationships with their clients and with the companies that they analyze. Networking at its finest and most fruitful.

Networking is as important of a success tool as having a professional image and setting goals. Yet, most people would rather do public speaking than walk into a social setting with a room full of strangers (and most people would rather face death than do public speaking). But networking is about building relationships and these relationships can blossom into opportunities. If you are hesitant about getting out there and meeting potential clients, employers and colleagues, think about the benefits that those Wall Street analysts have gotten from networking and go out there and build your success. 

To read the full blog article, Why Wall Street’s Top Women Rarely Lose Their Star Power, click here.

In this week’s Crain’s Chicago Business, there is an article about stud earrings in the Business of Life section. The article is about the classiness of studs earrings for maintaining a professional image at work. As an accessory, they are neat and not distracting. Sarah Schulte from WLS/Channel 7 was quoted saying, “When you’re a TV reporter, you don’t want something to distract the viewer”.  The same holds true in the office. When you are climbing the ladder of success, you don’t want anything to distract away from your abilities. Large, dangling earrings, very bold necklaces, clanging, chiming bracelets and rings on every finger can do just that.
Jewelry is one of the topics addressed in the Give Yourself a Boost workshops. It also addresses displaying body piercings and how much jewelry is considered too much. When choosing jewelry for the office, just remember to KIS KIM - Keep It Simple, Keep It Minimal.

Recently I had lunch with a friend. We were celebrating a big promotion that she had earned and finally gotten. This promotion is going to give her great exposure to the top 10 key managers at her company. She is always dress nicely for work and this day was no exception.

Her work environment is business casual and she tends toward elegant business casual. So, I was thinking (as an image consultant I am always checking people’s professional image), ’she has the right look for this position. Good for her!’ Then we left and, still assessing her ensemble, I looked down at her shoes. SCREETCH!! “What have you got on your feet?”, I asked. “Oh, I just walk around the office in these”. They were dull, scuffed and the back looked liked her dogs had been fighting over them. “Okay, you are going to be playing with the big kids now! You are going to be scrutinized, put under the microscope until you prove that can handle this new position. You cannot walk around in those shoes”.

Having a polished professional image does not end at the outfit. All of the details are involved, including your shoes. We women sometimes forget about our shoes, but they should be cleaned and polished regularly. Don’t think that shoes aren’t that noticeable or that they are just a small detail. Just think, how often have you admired the shoes that you have seen on someone’s feet? How often have you checked out someone’s shoes and thought ’she should throw those away’? Well, your colleagues do the same thing. What will they think when they look down at your feet.

Don’t let old, scuffed up shoes derail your professional image.

Polished Professional Image’s theme for 2008 is Take Control of Your Success. That means planning every step of the way. But why should you take control? Surely, the company that you work for has your best interest at heart, right? Surely, management knows what a great job that you are doing and will do the right thing by promoting and compensating you, right? Not necessarily. 

I attended the retirement party of a colleague that had worked at the company fifty-two years – that’s 5 2. Fifty of those years were spent in one department. So, did the company rent out a big banquet hall for the party? No. Did the company take over a restaurant for lunch or dinner? No. The “party” (cake - that’s right, cake - was served. Not cake and hors d’oeuvres or cake and coffee or cake and water! Cake) was held in a conference room – the executive conference room, but a conference room nonetheless. One executive officer showed up (the two that came in after the presentation don’t count). One! 

Okay, this is starting sound like a rant – well, it is, kind of. But it is to make the point that you cannot expect your company to appreciate your loyalty and do the right thing by you. You have to Take Control of Your Success. Set your goals, meet the right people, carry yourself in a professional way, find an advocate and if you have to, make a move! It’s your career, take control of it. 

Over the holidays, I was speaking with an associate with whom I had not spoken in a while. She asked what I had been up to since we last spoke. Of course, I told her about Polished Professional Image and gave her a brief description of the services and mission.

Her response astounded me! She said that she doesn’t need to concern herself with her professional image because she does not want to “get into management”.  It wasn’t that she does not aspire to a managerial position that astounded me – management is not for everyone – it was that she thought that a professional image was needed only from those in management. She did not know that her image would have an impact on her raises and promotions.

According to a survey conducted by CareerBuilder.com, 75% of American workers say that clothing or personal appearances influence attitudes about professionalism. In fact, in the first 3 seconds of a person meeting you, they have made judgments about your profession, education, income, intelligence and personality! And they base these judgments on the way you dress, speak and carry yourself.  If your image gives the impression that you do not care about your job (and not caring about your image can result in that impression – right or wrong), your raises and promotions will suffer.

If you have been working your tushie off and your raises and promotions are not reflective of all of that hard work, check your professional image. If your co-workers get invited to sit in on key meetings with key management and you are asked to cover the phones, check your image. Don’t just tell yourself that business is slow or you “hate those meetings anyway”. Check your image. A professional image is not just for management.