022: Personal Branding on the Job | Six Steps to a Better First Impression [Podcast]

Today we start with Episode 22 and six steps to a better first impression.

• Appearance – By appearance I mean how you look. This is not dress, but perhaps hygiene. This harms more people than anything else. Looking rough tends to turn people off. Messy hair, sloppy dress, tattoos, and body piercings all make you look unclean. While some of this is culturally acceptable right now, it turns people off. Make your best first impression by controlling all you can in looking clean and neat.
  • Take control: Pay attention to how neat you look. Brush your hair, your teeth and make sure your clothes fit. If you have tattoos, hide them best you can. Show up to work like your mother would like to see you dressed.
• Posture – This is second on purpose. This is such a big deal people often miss it. Nothing tells me you are confident and a leader more than posture. Good posture not only can help you get a good first impression, it can also keep you healthy.
  • Take Control: Stand tall and sit up straight. If you have poor posture due to your muscles not working right, get help. Pilates is a great way to get posture under control. (Yes – even for guys) If you really need help, see those at Egoscue. Ignore the fact that they are about pain, because if you have poor posture sooner or later it will cause you pain.
• Dress – You need to dress the part. If you work in an office, look how those above you (two levels or more your superior’s) dress. If not in an office, be neat. Get high quality clothing that fits your role.
  • Take Control: Find a clothing store that specializes in the kind of clothing for your field of work. If needed, ask one of those who is a leader above you where to go. Once you get to such a store, you can get real advice. Buy what you can afford and sooner or later you will be well dressed.
• Eye contact – This is a must. Missing direct eye contact tells others you are either a liar or insecure. Perhaps both.
  • Take Control: Look at the other person in the eye when they talk. This is hard to do it you are not used to it, but focus on their eyes as if their eyes are speaking. (They are!) It gets easier the more you do it.
• Language – I do not care that foul language seems normal today, it is not an option if you want to be taken seriously. I know some people are OK with it, but others are offended. So why risk it? And, like it or not, it is worse for a woman to use foul language than for a man. But either should be off the table. If you think you are being hip by using foul language, get over it.
  • Take Control: If this is a habit you have, seek out a friend you trust who does not engage in such language and ask for their help. Have them correct you, slap you, or do whatever you need.
• Speech – No one likes to hear from a whiner, a sarcastic jerk, or someone who spreads negative thinking. Are you guilty? You most likely are. But you will not know it unless you ask. So ask.
  • Take Control: Be very intentional when you talk. Before you speak, think about if this is the speech of a winner or a whiner. Speak only things positive and uplifting to others. No need to be fake, but if you do not have anything good to say, don’t say anything.

If you suffer from any of the above, you can have a dramatic impact on those around you by just changing these habits. People notice this stuff.