As my mother used to say, there are four main food groups: hair, teeth, hands and feet.

They are your biggest assets in making a professional impression, and the first things people notice.

Everyone should have a recent, stylish haircut, freshly brushed and dentally-cleaned teeth, well-groomed nails and polished shoes.

For Women:

Makeup enhances your visual presence; not to look like a runway model but to demonstrate that you take pride in your appearance. Eye contact is critical in a job interview so invest in subtle shades of color to showcase your eyes. Wear black mascara for definition and some blush with lipstick or lipgloss to accent your look. Nail polish completes the frame of this picture so choose a subtle color rather than black/purple selections. Ditch the long fake extensions and keep your nails at a conservative length.

For Men:

You will be judged by many things so don’t overlook the condition of your nails.

Dare I suggest a manicure? (without polish of course!)

For both Men and Women:

Invest in a tasteful pen. Ditch pens that advertise hotels or plumbing companies. A Mont Blanc is not necessary, but bring along a pen that shows you have good taste. If you are going to write notes, bring along a leather bound portfolio with a lined pad inside. Always give out your business card with your name facing the person. When you receive the interviewer’s card, look at it to determine their title and leave it on the table until you leave. If you forget their full name, you just have to glance down. If you are meeting with several recruiters, lay out the cards in the order that they are sitting to avoid mixing up their names.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 27th, 2010 at 2:08 pm and is filed under Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.