As a leadership coach, I am constantly quizzed on why appearance matters in becoming influential or to grow as a leader. The din gets louder particularly in information technology companies where it is ‘cool’ to dress down which, at times, is a bare minimum with shorts, tees and flip-flops!
The other argument made is ‘..our work should matter, not how we look!’ Not to stereotype, but the general attitude shown by executives in India, towards dressing presentably, is one of indifference.
Appearance does matter as it is one of the most important optics that creates our impression of people around us. The other attributes that build perceptions are, your actions (walk the talk), your body language and your ways of conversing.
Enhancing your appearance doesn’t require you to wear expensive or branded clothes and accessories. It simply means ‘dressing well’ as in –
You wear well-fitting clothes
The colours suit your skin/complexion
The colours are coordinated well
You dress to suit the decorum of the event, and
It is not distracting
Dress well, as often as possible, particularly when you must influence the situation. With unending Webinars and Zoom calls these days, do not disregard your audience with unkempt looks or a messy room in the backdrop! In the absence of salons and salonists, do your best to keep your facial hair and crest trimmed or groomed. Wear solid, and preferably dark, colour clothing as your top; the bottom isn’t visible anyway!
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When addressing your audience, deliver the message in a clear, concise and confident manner with the right body language and voice. Yes, your audience can sense your confidence in your voice even if they cannot see you visually!
Dressing well boosts your presence and leaves a better impression on your audience, in an immeasurable way. I often ask leaders, “Why can’t every day be an Interview day? After all, don’t we naturally spend more time and effort dressing up prior to an interview?!”
Pay attention to your appearance if you want others to pay attention to you. Dress well, as often as possible, particularly when you must influence the situation.
- The writer is a global leadership coach and mentor, based in Mumbai. He believes in passionately inspiring CXOs to build their Gravitas. He has a decade’s experience coaching diverse leaders across industries and geographies and spent 20 years in leadership roles in investment banking, private equity, consulting and strategy.
5 Most Sought-After Skills In A Post-Covid Workplace
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Upskilling is the order of the day whether it’s because your industry has been affected, you’ve been asked to leave or simply just considering a change. And the new normal means that certain skills will be highly sought in the post COVID-19 world, given that many of our usual ways of living have changed. Employees all over the world are compelled to adjust to digital infrastructure and work remotely. This requires acquiring new skills – not just technical but also soft skills to make a smooth transition into the new way of working. Lakshmi Mittra, VP – Center of Excellence (CoE) and Clover Academy, Clover Infotech, shares the top skills that in a post covid world:
Upskilling is the order of the day whether it’s because your industry has been affected, you’ve been asked to leave or simply just considering a change. And the new normal means that certain skills w..
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Problem solving skills become essential in a remote working scenario. Since employees are collaborating and communicating virtually, this can raise a series of challenges. Problem solving skills enable employees to approach problems rationally and view them as opportunities. In this way, they can identify the most effective methods to rectify situations and ensure smooth functioning of business operations.
Problem solving skills become essential in a remote working scenario. Since employees are collaborating and communicating virtually, this can raise a series of challenges. Problem solving skills enab..
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The current global crises have not only tested employees’ capabilities to perform in a remote working environment but also their emotional resilience. With some enterprises announcing remote working till the end of 2020, it has become imperative for managers to develop strong leadership qualities to manage teams remotely, inspire and bring out the best in them by outcome based management. Enterprises are organizing courses to skill their leadership and mid-management teams to plan and manage their work better and build camaraderie among their teams remotely.
The current global crises have not only tested employees’ capabilities to perform in a remote working environment but also their emotional resilience. With some enterprises announcing remote working ..
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Since the majority of the workforce is operating from home, hackers are using this as an opportunity to launch cyber-attacks. As per recent reports, there has been a significant increase in the number of cyberattacks on personal computers, networks, and routers. With IT and cyber security becoming more critical than ever, cybersecurity experts will be on the priority list for every enterprise.
Since the majority of the workforce is operating from home, hackers are using this as an opportunity to launch cyber-attacks. As per recent reports, there has been a significant increase in the numbe..
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With remote working and collaboration, it is very important to communicate clearly and be well-planned to get the best out of teams. Right from training and skilling employees to getting projects delivered on time, communication skills will become very critical and could be a key factor that distinguishes successful projects from the others.
With remote working and collaboration, it is very important to communicate clearly and be well-planned to get the best out of teams. Right from training and skilling employees to getting projects del..
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When it comes to the remote working culture, organizations are transitioning their operating models to incorporate remote working capabilities. They are trying to get as many applications and technology infrastructure on the cloud as possible. The enterprises that are already equipped with a cloud strategy have been able to seamlessly transition to virtual working quicker, and with minimal disruption to their teams and customers. With cloud being a key part of enterprises’ digital transformation strategy, there will be a greater demand for cloud architects and cloud IT admins in the post COVID-19 new normal.
When it comes to the remote working culture, organizations are transitioning their operating models to incorporate remote working capabilities. They are trying to get as many applications and technol..
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of www.economictimes.com.)
