3 WAYS TO BE TAKEN MORE SERIOUSLY

Appearance in the workplace is everything. If you believe otherwise, you are kidding yourself. If you have your sights set on that promotion, make sure you are acting the part. These 3 tips will help you snag the job you deserve. Get the tips here!

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1. Hire a Copy Editor

There’s no denying that business communications have become increasingly casual as people more frequently use email, messaging, blogs and so forth. This creates an opportunity, because you can now create an aura of superior professionalism simply by communicating with error-free text … especially if your competition is winging it.

If you’re not capable of writing perfect copy yourself, though, hire a copy editor to go over your  most important documents–even emails. It’s surprisingly inexpensive.  I’ve had good experiences with PureText, but if they’re too busy, it shouldn’t be too difficult to locate an alternative.

2. Speak More Clearly

I’ve interviewed hundreds of top executives, and the most successful (like Larry Ellison and Michael Dell) have well-modulated voices and tend to speak slowly and clearly.  The wannabes, on the other hand, talk fast, say “uh …” or “like …” in the middle of their sentences or, worst of all, have that annoying little uptick at the end of a sentence that turns it from a statement into a question.

To sound more professional, record your voice when you’re talking in person and on the telephone, listen carefully to the playback, become aware of what you’re doing, then try again.  Repeat until you’ve learned to slow down and speak more clearly.  If necessary, hire a vocal coach.

3. Sanitize Your Online Persona

I’ve written about this in the past, but it bears repeating: Don’t buy into this nonsense that you should meld your business and personal life.

Unless you’re running for political office, publicity about your family distracts from your professional image, even if you’ve got a trophy spouse and perfect children. And if you’re into anything at all unusual or weird, I guarantee you that it will come up in some business situation that makes you wish it hadn’t. So troll through the social networking sites and make your personal life private again. If this means creating a separate Facebook page for your working life, so be it.

Get more great tips at INC!