Does Appearance Matter in Small Business?
I was watching an interesting video podcast over at Tailored Consulting the other day where Brendon Sinclair and one of his staff discussed the question of whether or not appearance really matters. (You can find the link to it here)
It was interesting to see that after the video podcast one person who saw it took Brendon to task for looking too casual and even using what they described as outdated equipment.
I had to laugh at that because one thing that was briefly mentioned in the video was that appearances can vary from one country to another. Here in Queensland - and especially on the Gold Coast where Brendon’s business is located - successful business people don’t always wear a tie.
Yet that was something this particular commentor really flayed him over - in his eyes Brendon was just not looking the part.
It’s rather sad in a way that so many people rely on appearance when judging a person’s capabilities.
In my personal experience the most effective legal representative that I have ever seen in action in court was a man who always looked as though he slept under the nearest bridge. At the same time one of the sharpest looking barristers was the biggest fool I have ever seen.
The best newspaper reporter I have ever come across was an old guy who never wore a tie and didn’t appear to own a jacket either while the reporter I frequently saw in court who did wear a tie and jacket was the one who usually got the story wrong.
The sharpest looking Inspector in my old job was the poorest manager of men while the meekest looking field officer was the one I always wanted to be covering my back when things were going pear shaped and the nearest backup was 100 kilometres away.
Does appearance really matter? I would suggest that it’s what you see when you look a person in the eye and the firmness of his handshake that matters more than whether he’s wearing a bespoke suit or using a gold pen.
But then that’s just my opinion 
