In our previous post we talked about the importance of building your personal brand by dressing appropriately at work. Your attire may make that all important first impression but the lasting “brand impression” you make will be formed over time by things like your grooming and behaviour.
When it comes to grooming, the truth of the matter is that even the finest clothes won’t make up for poor grooming like dirty finger nails, garlic breath or unkempt hair. Personal grooming is, rightly or wrongly, equated with self-respect and clients and business associates can easily assume that such “disrespect” of one’s self extends to one’s work ethic and performance too. On the other hand, good grooming will make you stand out and give you an advantage over your peers.
Good business behavior encompasses a wide range of aspects including communication and habits.
Tardiness – in terms of both timekeeping and delivery – is one of the biggest personal brand destroyers. Becoming known as someone who delivers, and arrives, on time, every time is a goal worth pursuing and fosters trust and respect. Your verbal and body language is a major contributor to how people perceive you. Yes, it is 2019 and the odd four-letter word does not raise eyebrows like it it did a few decades ago, but does bad language really fit in with the brand image that you want to create?
Table manners are probably one of the last things that one would consider in terms of employable attributes but, if you’ve ever sat across from someone in the staff canteen (or at a business lunch) who talks with a mouth full of food and manhandles their cutlery, you’ll appreciate that table manners are as important in the work environment as they are at home. And, while we’re talking about eating, can we just agree that loud, lip-smacking gum chewing is a no-no, anywhere, anytime!
Then there’s the minefield of social media…a disclaimer in your bio that your posts reflect your personal views just does not cut it. Your profile is a window into who you are and what makes you tick and, rest assured, clients, employers and colleagues will peek through the window. The list of people who have lost their jobs, and had their lives destroyed, because of social media transgressions is growing. The maxim, don’t say anything on social media that you would not have appear on a billboard along with your name is good advice.
Selling your personal brand to clients and colleagues is especially important when you are a contractor – the client has no contractual obligation to employ you and the individual that comes across best will be the most sought after.
© Tony McManus, McManus Consulting. | Image created by Freepik.com.
