• Look Good and Fulfill the Expectations: It's What's Upfront that Counts

    by Alexander Becker on September 14, 2006 | Link

    Functional vs. cosmetic exercises: Lifting weights is to strength training what dressing the part is to business -- you have to look the part in order to convey the power you represent.

    In business, you have to dress up. In order to be taken seriously by your partners and competitors, you have to follow the conventions of your particular field of expertise.

    You work at the stock exchange? Wall Street? You are expected to show up in a certain manner, conforming to your environment, living the style and habits of the people you work with. The smartest broker isn't always the one you can spot from a distance but you get extra points for looking like the smartest broker.

    You work in any kind of hierarchy? You better look like a professional at your level of hierarchy is supposed to. You may dress up a level, but here is where your freedom of stylistically expressing yourself ends.

    You're training and exercising and rehearsing in order to perform at the Cirque Du Soleil? You are the strongest and most skillful artist in your class. Your feats are legendary with your peers and among the small audience you appear in front of.

    Yet, you look average. You look like a gymnast. While there is nothing wrong with that and I personally adore the gymnast's physique, you don't look the part. Nothing to see here, please move along.

    People expect you to look big. The way you show off your strength, you just have to be big. Raw strength has to be delivered by huge, wild animals. Unfortunately, no one buys that you do all that you do, being that small, civil and average. Your audience wants the spectacular. They want you to perform big and look big.

    The same way you have to make your looks congruent with your business, you will probably have to lift some weights in order to get a little bigger to convince your fans that you are capable of mastering the loads.

    Your performance, in business, as well as on stage does not necessarily have to improve -- perfect your looks and enjoy your success. Your improved looks even work with yourself, your outward appearance is projected to the inside and makes you feel -- and thus perform -- even better.

    Please note that I do not suggest to perform less and exclusively concentrate on looking better. There are times when the quality of your actual work is close to maximum potential in your particular field and you might be looking for ways to improve. Start with your looks then. Otherwise, increase both the quality of your performance and enhance your looks at the same time.

    How would anybody know or recognize who you are if you don't look like who you are?

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