Career Developement Tip #8 - Polished Professional - Appearance Counts!

Career Development Tip #8- The Polished Professional - Appearance Counts! The idealist in me wants to believe that everybody is always evaluated purely based on their perfomance.  The realist understands that taking time to make sure that one looks professional is putting the best foot forward at work and does pay off. A few tips:

1) If you don't know the traditional seasonal rules, learn them (examples, white shoes and handbags only between Memorial Day and Labor Day, no wool flannels after Easter, always wear pantyhose or leggings with a skirt in the workplace). 
2) Business Casual?  What does that mean?  Just to be safe: No Jeans, No Flip Flips (even if they are designer and super cute), no shorts, no "t-shirts" (don't care how much it cost).  Casual pants with a nice sweater, blouse or jacket will suffice.  Err on the side of "more business, less casual".  It is embarrassing to hear "it's a business casual event" only to show up and be underdressed.  Spare yourself the anguish, invest in a nice pair of casual pants and a few nice shirts to fall back on. 
3) Hair...this is one I have struggled with personally.  Who has time to sit in a chair for an hour while somebody snips away? Styling every day?  So many better ways to spend that time!  It reminds me of a line in a play I saw in high school "Why do girls need to spend two hours getting dressed, all while trying to look natural?"  None the less, haircuts every sit to eight weeks are a must.  
4) If you don't know what is appropriate for a given meeting or event, don't be afraid to ask.  Err on the side of being dressed more professionally, you can always take a jacket off, but you might regret not having one on.
5) Pay attention to the details.  Shoes, handbags, briefcases etc should always be polished and in good condition.  We all have that favorite pair of shoes that is perfectly broken in, the key is to know when to retire them. 

With a little attention to your appearance you can easily put your best foot forward in appearance and show yourself to be as polished in your appearance as you are in your performance.