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From the first day you start your job, colleagues start looking out for behaviours, qualities, and possible patterns.
Quite frankly, from the interview you had before you got the job, your interviewer most likely looked out for traits to know if you were the right fit. If your behaviours matched that of the company culture at that preliminary stage, it may become one of the factors that determine if you would be selected or not.
Most times, co-workers are able to draw inferences from your behaviours (little or not) and they use this to judge your personality.
Do you agree with me? Ever noticed such at your job?
Read: Your Handwriting Says a lot about your Personality (Analyze it!)
So it’s of importance that you know certain areas of your behaviour that need a bit of fixing -because either way you can’t be too perfect, but you can at least try!
1. Constantly checking your phone
I’ve heard people say that they can’t live without their phones and it’s simply hilarious. I guess it’s hilarious because I grew up in Nigeria and it took a while before cell phones became common. So I pretty much grew up without owning one and it was towards the end of my high school days that my parents passed down an old phone to me.
In fact, back then, there was nothing like the internet on the phone anyway, and certainly no camera either! So when I hear people say they can’t live without their phones, I get a bit puzzled. How were you living when there were no phones?!
Oh well, not everyone grew up in the same location or time as me, though, so I totally understand. Also, things are a lot more different these days, so I get it.
Times have changed thankfully and the world has become a global village. But if you constantly check your phones at a meeting, or just when you shouldn’t do so at work, it may give a negative impression of you.
From research, emotionally unstable people are likely to constantly check their phones to boost their moods because they seek solace from the problems of the day. Also, introverts are less likely to get addicted to their phones because they don’t need a sense of connection or socialization.
Read: How to be Successful at Work even as an Introvert
2. Eye Contact
I can’t emphasize how important it is to make good eye contact and I’ve written an article on this before. Making quality eye contact displays confidence and shows that you are trustworthy. But far from this, it also improves the interaction you have with the other party; communication becomes better.
Read: Mastering the Art of Eye Contact
3. Whether you ask questions and how long it takes
Personally, I believe it’s great to ask questions where necessary because it clears out doubts. It’s also good to ask the appropriate question and you should be able to discern a good question from a bad one, I believe.
Read: Best Ways to Get Help at Work
Also, if you’ve been working at your present job for a while, it’ll be good to ask some type of questions, that help you know more about the company and get to know your colleagues better. You’d be amazed at how much information you would receive, and how much you’d learn from asking questions at the appropriate time and place.
So, if you are meeting a client or a co-worker for the first time, the type of questions you ask determines if you show concern or not. It also expresses if you are just there to be a giver or receiver. It goes a long way to show the type of person you are and what your interests are.
4. Handshake
A handshake is something that is close to a norm in almost every professional setting, and how you go about giving a handshake may make or break the environment setting. It also determines how you may be judged by others. Strong handshakes usually depict a strong and confident character, while a weak handshake says the opposite: shy and intimidated.
Read: Things your Handshake Reveals about you
5. Punctuality
Whether you show up early to work or not could go a long way in creating lasting impressions on your co-workers. It is assumed that a motivated or energetic person would show up early to work or meetings.
Read: 7 Ways to Increase your Motivation at Work
Read: How to Manage Attendance Issues or Absenteeism in the Workplace
According to science, habitually late people are more creative and view life in a more optimistic manner. If you are constantly arriving late to work, it could mean that you don’t feel creative at your job and you are looking out for a better opportunity subconsciously.
From another research, conducted by San Diego State University, it professes that lateness is associated with Type B people (people who are laid back, more easy going, not that stubborn, and very adaptive to surroundings).
If you are always late, I’m sure you are smiling to yourself already. Anyway, read this article below on how to save some hours in the morning so that you get to work early. Practicing these tips could help you out!
Read: 5 Simple Tips to Save Time in the Morning before Work
6. How you treat support staff
How you treat support staff in your company is also so key in determining your personality or how co-workers judge you. Do you show respect to them? Are you a snob? Do you belittle your receptionist or maybe company driver? Respect is reciprocal and no one is smaller than the other. How you treat support staff whether in your company or maybe at a restaurant (when you and your co-workers go out for lunch) gives a sense of how you treat people in general.
Basically, it’s important that you pay more attention to how you treat others because it can be used to judge your personality, by co-workers or even your boss.
Behaviours are so hard to break because it’s a pattern that has been grown over a long period of time, but I implore you to at least make an effort in getting better. Little steps matter!
Taking note of these behaviours will help all aspects of your work-life.
What behaviour are you guilty of and how do you hope to improve? Please share other things that co-workers can use to judge your personality?
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I’m a qualified estate surveyor an valuer. just wants you to advise me on how to manage my clients.
Hi Omojola, thank you for your message. To help me serve you better, kindly send an email to [email protected] giving me a detailed explanation of what your issues are and what your expectations for your clients are. I’ll be happy to help and would respond as soon as possible. I look forward to hearing back from you. Have a great weekend ahead!
I find Point 1 quite baffling as well. I also ask the same question you asked, ‘How were you living when there were no phones?!’ It may seem like no one notices but people do. It’s worse in social settings – phones have become our crutches when we don’t want to or are unsure of how to socialise. I remember going to the birthday party of a close friend of mine about 4 years ago. It was at a restaurant and at some point, I looked round the table (there were 30 guests or so) and everyone except my friend, her husband, another friend of ours and I were talking to each other. Everyone else had their heads down, glued to their phones. It was actually quite a scary sight. Lol. Great, great post!
I know, I know! It feels weird sometimes, but oh well.. Thanks for reading, I’m sure you are having a great day, Oma, wishing you the very best!