There are so many things in life you simply cannot control such as the weather, stock market, economy, and what’s happening around the world. Also, you certainly can’t control what other people think, say, or do. However, the power to change how you show up is in your hands.
Your professional presence is not something that simply happens to you. You can intentionally develop it by refining your personal brand, elevating your appearance, strengthening your communication, increasing your confidence, and becoming more visible.
One of the most powerful things you can do is become more appreciative of the woman you already are which includes your body, your talents, your experiences, your personality, and the unique qualities you bring into every room.
As we enter this season of gratitude, here are 10 reasons to be grateful for YOU and for the power you possess to elevate your professional presence.
Be Grateful for Your Unique Personal Brand – There is only one you. As a child remember singing, there’s no one exactly like me.” Your combination of experiences, talents, personality, values, expertise, and appearance creates a personal brand no one else can duplicate. Instead of asking, “How can I look like everyone else?” ask, “How can I make the best of what makes me distinctive?” Your personal brand is an authentic reflection of who you are and an intentional expression of where you are going.
Be Grateful for Your Body – Many women are incredibly critical of their bodies focusing on the excess pounds, stressing about the areas we want to hide, or wishing for a different silhouette. Somehow, we pick out and focus on all the things that we’re not happy with.
What if you changed the conversation? Your body has carried you through your life. It has taken you into meetings, presentations, celebrations, challenges, career changes and countless ordinary days. You are more than a number on a scale. Instead of fighting your body, learn how to dress the body you have today in a way that creates balance, proportion and confidence. There is a style that fits and flatters every silhouette.
Be Grateful for Your Silhouette – There is no “perfect” body silhouette. Every silhouette has beautiful features worth highlighting. Understanding your proportions allows you to choose clothing that works with your body rather than against it. The goal is to understand what makes you look fabulous rather than squeezing yourself into the latest trend. When clothing fits and flatters your unique silhouette, something wonderful happens, you stop thinking about your clothes and start focusing on the people and opportunities in front of you.
Be Grateful for the Power of Choice – Every morning, you get to choose how you present yourself to the world. You select the color, fit, fabric, and accessories. Those choices may seem small, but together they communicate a message before you ever say a word. You can choose to blend into the background, or you can choose to be memorable.
Your wardrobe is one of the few business tools you wear, so use it strategically!
Be Grateful for the Colors That Make You Radiate – As an artist and personal brand stylist, I know the transformational power of color. Your best colors can brighten your complexion, bring attention to your eyes, make you appear more energetic and help communicate qualities such as confidence, authority, warmth, creativity or trust. Color doesn’t just decorate you, rather it communicates for you. Be grateful that something as simple as changing the color near your face can change the energy you bring into a room.
Be Grateful for Your Experience – Every year of your career has given you knowledge, wisdom, resilience, relationships, expertise and perspective. Sometimes our appearance doesn’t evolve along with our accomplishments. Ask yourself: Does the woman people see today visually represent the experience, expertise and authority I have earned?
You worked hard to become the woman you are today and your professional presence should honor that journey.
Be Grateful for Your Voice and Your Nonverbal Voice – Professional presence is about much more than clothing. Before you speak, people notice how you enter the room, your posture, facial expression, eye contact, handshake and overall energy. Even silence communicates. Your nonverbal presence can say: I belong here. I am confident. I am capable. I am someone worth listening to. That is a powerful language available to all of us.
Be Grateful That Confidence Can Be Cultivated – You don’t have to wake up feeling 100% confident every morning. Confidence grows through preparation, practice and experience. Your appearance can be part of that preparation. When you know your clothing fits beautifully, represents your personal brand and is appropriate for the situation, you eliminate one more distraction. Instead of wondering, “Do I look okay?” you can walk into the room thinking, “Who can I connect with? How can I contribute? What opportunity can I create?”
Be Grateful for Your Ability to Reinvent Yourself – Perhaps the way you showed up professionally five or ten years ago no longer represents you. Growth means change. A promotion, new business, career transition, speaking opportunity, leadership position or new season of life can be the perfect reason to reassess your professional image. You are not required to remain visually attached to an earlier version of yourself. Dress for the woman you are becoming. Be it until you see it!
Be Grateful That You Can Begin Today – You don’t need an entirely new wardrobe, a different body, another degree or permission from anyone else to begin elevating your presence. Start with what you already have by standing a little taller and wearing a color that makes you radiate. Choose an outfit that makes you feel powerful. Make eye contact. Smile. Walk into the room as though you belong there because you do.
Gratitude Changes How We See Ourselves – This season, when you’re making your gratitude list, don’t forget to put yourself on it. Be grateful for your body instead of criticizing it. Be grateful for the experiences that have shaped you. Be grateful for your talents, your personality, your wisdom and even the characteristics that make you different. Most importantly, be grateful that while there are many things in this world you cannot control, you can control how intentionally you show up in it. Your professional presence is not about pretending to be someone you’re not. It’s about making sure your brilliance on the inside is reflected on the outside. When your appearance, confidence, communication and personal brand are aligned, people don’t simply see what you’re wearing. They see YOU. Now that’s something worth celebrating.
Always ImageUp!
Arlene
