If you expose too much of your skin and body in a professional workplace setting, you will turn people off with your presence. The more exposed you are, the less authority you possess.
I know. The very last thing you might think I would want to tell you about is how to turn people off with your presence! But just think about it. If I tell you how to turn people off with your presence, maybe you’ll consider doing the opposite.
Touring around at different companies, it’s very clear that perhaps the number one way to turn people off with your presence is to dress provocatively. This is definitely an issue that affects more women. But men also do this, too. While work is a place of business, there are some people, at least, who have a different kind of business on their minds when selecting clothes to wear to work.
If your clothes are too tight, you’ll turn people off with your presence. The tightness turnoff is an equal opportunity offender. What I mean by that is it doesn’t matter if you’re overweight or if you’re a triathlete and in the best shape of your life. Clothes that are too tight will absolutely get people to look at you. But that kind of attention can’t be positive because it doesn’t add to your professional credibility. And if you sacrifice your credibility, you are sure to turn people off with your presence in the long run.
If your eyes traveled to a place on Mariah Carey’s body that you wished they hadn’t, it just proves that when your clothes are too tight you actually turn people off with your presence.
It also does not matter whether you are female or male. Sure, tight clothes are sure to draw an onlooker’s eyes to the tightest fitting areas on your body. But, if someone is looking at your chest, or at your crotch, you may think that your own skintight sexiness is satisfying to you. But to the onlooker, you turn people off with your presence because the attention is drawn away from your face. Why show off other anatomical parts when your face is what matters?
Another way to turn people off with your presence is to have visible underwear. No one wants to see your underwear. Your clothes must be the right size and fit properly. If you kneel down to pick something up from off the floor, and your pants pull so far down that doing so exposes your skin and reveals low-riding underwear, you are giving onlookers a display of a very unkempt presence.
Then there is an issue that I see with a lot of men. One way to turn people off with your presence, guys, is to wear your shirts untucked. Another way is to wear pants or jeans too low. The combination of the untucked shirt and jeans too low is very likely to reveal your underwear as well. There is a time and a place for everything, and the workplace is not the place to give people sight of your skivvies!
No doubt, it requires talent to apply makeup to achieve this look. But it’s not realistic. If the look is so strong, it will intimidate others and turn people off with your presence.
Wearing heavy and dark makeup is another surefire way to turn people off with your presence. I’ve been seeing more of this happening and attribute it to women wanting to emulate the editorial looks being promoted in style magazines and online. Be forewarned! No matter if you’re an executive, or an entrepreneur, or even support staff, you should think twice before taking on these dark and heavy looks. It looks like you’re hiding behind such applications of makeup, which diminishes the way people read your self-confidence.
Exposing too much skin is still another way to turn people off with your presence. Short-sleeved shirts, and T-shirts on a man or woman – especially with a plunging V-neckline – reduce your visual authority. The same result happens when a woman wears either a tank top or camisole without another layer over top. For the most part, people who wear less clothing are thinking about comfort. But comfort isn’t just about covering up the least amount of the body as possible. Comfort is also about confidence. So if you forego inner comfort for outer comfort, you will turn people off with your presence.
You can turn people off with your presence in ways that have nothing to do with your clothing. You can have a slouchy posture, or shifty eye contact. You may also repel others with your choice of scent. Are you wearing a scent that is just too strong? Or perhaps your body odor or breath is also too strong for others to come into close contact with you. These body language and personal grooming issues will keep people at a distance from you.
When I talk with individuals or to groups of professionals about the importance of personal presence, many people think that they are beyond reproach. I understand. Your personal presence is a highly personal topic. No one wants to be wounded by criticism. But people are making judgments about you all the time. So turning a blind eye to how you manage your visual brand is a surefire way to turn people off with your presence.
Show others that you care about yourself, and that you care about them by taking care of yourself. Others will show you the respect you deserve and make you feel honored.
Joseph Rosenfeld helps successful Silicon Valley entrepreneurs transform their self-confidence by improving their personal style. Get Joseph’s free report that helps you know “7 Ways to Transform Your Personal Style”.
