The last thing any employee wants to do is to look unprofessional at work. Unfortunately, there are times when you may inadvertently behave in such a way as to undermine your manager’s confidence in your professional skills. You want to avoid making errors at work that hurt your credibility and make you look unprofessional, which means you need to know what kinds of actions to avoid.
Some of the different behaviors that could make you look unprofessional include:
- Dressing too casually. Coming to work in jeans and a T-shirt when everyone else is business casual will give the impression you don’t care about the job and aren’t committed to making your best impression. Find out what the company dress code is, and if they don’t have an official dress code, try to dress similarly to your peers.
- Bad-mouthing co-workers. Complaining about others or gossiping at work doesn’t make the person you are talking about look bad – it reflects poorly on you. If you have a legitimate grievance with someone at work, address it appropriately by talking to HR and providing documented evidence of a problem. Otherwise, avoid bad-mouthing others lest you look petty and come across as a troublemaker who can’t get along well as a member of the team.
- Arriving late. Tardiness is a major red flag to employers that you aren’t motivated and aren’t giving the job your all. Most companies have policies that involve disciplining workers for lateness. Even if your company doesn’t have an official policy, coming in late time and again will not go unnoticed.
- Making sloppy errors. While mistakes sometimes happen, making repeated careless errors shows your employer you are not giving your job the time and attention that it deserves.
Behaving in a professional manner at all times, from the interview process to your daily work tasks, will help you earn the respect of your manager and advance in your career. If you need help finding a workplace where your professionalism will be appreciated, give us a call today at 972-991-7900 or contact us online.